Inner Demons
by kittenamos
Summary: Raven's point-of-view throughout the Teen Titans episodes; HIATUS
1. Go!

Hey, everyone! This is my first Teen Titans story, so I hope you like it.

In this story, each chapter is going to focus on a different episode from the original TV series. Some chapters are going to follow more closely to an episode than others.

 **(** The chapter titles are going to correspond with the titles of the episodes I'm referring to **)**

I don't own Teen Titans

* * * Please read and review * * *

* * *

 **Chapter 1: Go!**

My head was throbbing and my body ached from where it had skidded against the hard, rocky surface. With immense difficulty, I slowly pushed myself up onto my knees, and discovered that a sea of flames surrounded me.

I took a couple deep breaths to calm myself before turning my head to look back at my demonic father. His four bright red eyes stared back at me menacingly.

"There is no stopping it. It is going to happen, and you are going to help me," his voice boomed through the fiery landscape. The ground shook violently as his huge feet drew closer. "This is the reason you were born."

"No," I denied, turning away from him. "That's not what I want. I'm not going to help you."

I had been fed the same story ever since I was born. The reason I was here, the only reason why my father cared about me at all, was because I had been chosen to help him with his future scheme. He wanted to take over the world . . . and I was supposed to help him do it.

"I am the one with all the power! I am the one who decides your destiny! You do not have a choice!"

He was becoming infuriated at my continuing denial, but I couldn't help it. That couldn't be the only reason I was here. I didn't want to hurt anybody. I didn't want to control others and have them fear me. There had to be another reason for me to be alive.

"Dear daughter, you cannot deny the evil that is within you," he said, pausing to stare down at me. His eyes flickered for a moment, as if he were debating something, but then his beady little eyes shot through me like a laser beams. "You will bring destruction to everything and to everyone."

My eyes began to glow white with anger, and I pushed myself back to my feet before turning around to face him. Black orbs of energy engulfed my clenched fists at my sides.

"I will never help you! You can't make me!"

Without waiting for him to reply, I transformed into a black raven and flew off into the distance, desperate to finally get away from my father.

* * *

After teleporting to Earth, I hid myself in a dark alley before returning to my normal form and moved to place the hood of my cloak over my head.

"I should be safe here," I said to myself. "At least . . . until it's time."

Using the shadows to stay hidden, I poked my head around the corner of the building to get my first look at the planet.

The sky was dark, but lights were on everywhere in the streets. Most of the stores still appeared to be open in town as people were out roaming the sidewalks.

Moving further back into the alley, I stood with my back pressed against one of the brick walls, trying to decide what my next move was.

My father was probably furious with me. I had never stood up to him like that before now. At this realization, my body started to shake with a mixture of fear and frustration. If I couldn't pull myself together from this, how was I going to stop my destiny from happening?

I could already feel my powers starting to build inside me as my emotions began to take over. Taking a deep breath to start my calming process, I floated up into my meditating position.

It only took a few seconds for the sound of sirens wailing in the distance to break my concentration. Groaning in annoyance, I opened my eyes in time to see a bright green streak slicing through the night sky . . . heading directly for the street on my right! I dove for cover just seconds before it crashed into the road.

I waited until the ringing in my ears died down before getting back to my feet. Heading back to the side the building, I looked out at the street in front of me. Smashed into the pavement was a very large crater that was emitting thick clouds of glowing green smoke. Several curious onlookers had stopped their cars to get a better look as well. It took a minute for the smoke to clear, and a young teenage girl with long red hair and orange skin appeared in the hole.

"She's dead . . ."

Just as the thought entered my mind, the girl's eyes snapped open to reveal two glowering green eyes.

"Slopforn ivortmat!" she yelled, as she got to her feet and started to advance towards the gathering crowd. "Slopforn! Ond gudshik zerrole!"

Before I could register what was happening, the girl was suddenly charging at the nearest vehicle, pounding her cuffed hands down on the hood hard enough to leave a huge dent in the metal. Her destruction around the street continued for a while, but as I watched her, I noticed that for the most part she seemed to be ignoring the humans that were cowering in fear. Instead, she kept most of her attention focused on the inanimate objects that were present.

"What is she doing?" I whispered to myself, as I continued to watch the destruction from my hiding place.

An idea seemed to come to the woman, and she turned to make her way towards the pizza joint that was across the street from me. A pillar was stationed on the sidewalk that was meant to support the balcony above it. Hurling herself at it, she proceeded to hit the column hard enough for it to begin to buckle and crack, causing the people on the balcony to scream in terror at the resulting vibrations.

My eyes widened as it suddenly occurred to me what she was trying to do. "The cuffs . . . She's trying to free herself."

Her destruction on the pillar finally stopped when a boomerang came whizzing by, hitting her squarely on the side of her head. The impact was so great that it knocked her off balance.

"Nice shot," I thought, as the girl turned to glare back in the direction that the attack had come from.

Turning to follow her line of sight, I saw another teenager standing on the roof of a parked car. The young man had dark, spiky hair and a cape was draped down his back. A mask was plastered to his face, covering his eyes.

I rolled my eyes at the kid. Honestly, the whole get-up appeared silly. What did he think he was doing? Did he really believe he stood a chance against this alien girl?!

Before I could decide what to do, the girl got back on her feet and leaped at the boy in attack. A mixture of bobbing and weaving maneuvers from the boy followed this as he did his best to avoid the attacks. Eventually, he reached into his belt and pulled out a grenade.

"Okay, maybe he can take care of himself . . ." I noted, as I allowed a small smile to appear on my face.

The fight between the boy and the alien proceeded until the girl finally got the upper hand. I was about to step out of my hiding place to go and help the boy, when a green horned sheep bounded into view and rammed into the alien at full speed.

My eyes widened in surprise at the appearance of the unnaturally colored creature, but before I could work out what I was seeing, the animal transformed back into a human form . . . a green human with pointy ears.

"Ex-Doom Patrol member, Beast Boy, sir!" I heard the strange green kid introduce himself to the boy that was standing in front of him. "Wowzers! You're Robin, aren't you, sir?"

"Robin?" I mouthed the name before focusing back on the green kid.

Beast Boy had his hand up against his forehead, saluting the Boy Wonder.

"The green kid, he's . . . kind of cute." The thought passed through my mind before I could stop it, and my eyes widened in horror. I quickly turned away from the scene and scooted down the wall a couple feet. I can't like him! I'm supposed to destroy the world!

The sound of metal grinding against the pavement brought my attention back to what was happening. Poking my head around the building again, my eyes landed on a newcomer to the battle. This one was dressed in baggy sweat pants and a huge gray hoodie. His hood was pulled up to cover his face, but I was able to make out a glowing red eye from the shadow.

"Yo!" his voice rang out in anger. "Who's here messing up my neighborhood?"

"She started it!" defended the green kid, pointing a finger towards the alien girl behind him.

With that, the fighting started up again, the three boys against the orange alien.

"This is stupid," I sighed. By now, they were clearly doing more harm than good. I had to do something.

Stepping out from the alley, I slowly made my way over to stand behind them, and put up a barrier with my magic to pause the fight.

"Maybe fighting isn't the answer," I heard myself say, and suddenly, all three boys were staring at me with looks of disapproval.

Slightly embarrassed about my interruption during their battle, I glanced off to one side to avoid eye contact with the Boy Wonder.

I was trying to break up a fight . . . What would my father do if he knew about this? What would he do if he knew I was exposing myself like this? By now, at least a hundred people had seen me . . . Father would surely find out and then I'd be done for . . .

"Stand down," Robin ordered, his voice slicing through the air like a boomerang. Did he really just take my advice?

Robin started forward, approaching the girl at a walk. When he was within a few feet of her, she hauled herself up and swiftly moved towards him with her fists out in front of her.

"Gokta!" she screamed at him.

"Easy," he said, holding one hand up in surrender as his other hand eased into his utility belt. "My name is Robin, and I don't want to hurt you. I just want to help."

I watched as he held something up for the girl to see, before taking another step towards her. The girl seemed to relax some as Robin used the screwdriver to pry off the cuffs. It didn't take long for the restraints to fall to the ground, finally freeing the girl.

"There. Now maybe we can – " Robin started, but was interrupted by a sudden unexpected move on the alien's part.

The orange girl had reached out to drag the Boy Wonder closer to her and planted a long kiss on his lips.

Seeing what was happening right in front of me, my eyebrows raised in surprise. After everything I had just witnessed, that was probably the last thing that I expected to happen between the pair, but what occurred next surprised me even more.

When the alien was done with her kiss, she pulled back and shoved Robin hard enough to drop him onto his back . . . and then she started speaking in English!

"If you wish not to be destroyed, you will leave me alone!" she growled before flying off into the night sky.

"Looks like we're done here," Robin noted once he got his composure back. "I appreciate the help." With that, he started to walk away.

I had just met this Robin kid a couple minutes ago, but something told me he wasn't the type of person to simply walk away from an attack.

"You're going to track down the alien?" I ventured a guess.

"I have to find out if she's a threat," he replied, not bothering to turn back.

"More like find out if she will give him another kiss," I heard the big one mumble behind me, and small smile crossed my face at his sarcasm.

Out of the corner of my eye, I saw the green kid run after Robin. I couldn't hear what he said to him, but it wasn't long before he turned back.

"Hey, you guys wanna get a pizza?" he asked, waving his arms in excitement.

The guy in the hoodie walked away without a response, leaving the green kid alone with me.

"I'm Beast Boy," he introduced himself, holding his hand out to me.

Ignoring his hand, I looked the kid in the eyes and was surprised to feel my face grow hot under my hood. "Raven," I said before turning to walk away, but the kid couldn't take the hint.

"So, what do you say?" he asked, easily catching up to my slow, monotonous pace. "Do you want to get something to eat?"

I paused in my departure and turned to look at the ground.

He wanted to hang out with me? After everything I had to face in my life so far . . . After having to put up with my demonic father for all those years, it would be nice to have a friend . . . but I couldn't. It would be too difficult in the end.

A familiar feeling of loneliness swept through me as I shook my head. "I really shouldn't," I muttered, and then walked away without another word.

I was only a few feet away from returning to the alley I had been hiding in when a long shadow started to crawl across the ground in front me. Glancing up, I stared in shock at the huge craft that was passing by low to the ground. Following the ship's progress with my eyes, I turned back around and watched as it came to a stop, hovering over the water, before dropping a big metal object onto a little island just a few miles from the shore. By the time a hologram projector of a new alien creature appeared above the dropped object, our ragtag group had gathered together again to hear what they had to say.

"People of Earth," the ugly space creature began in a deep, raspy voice. "We come to your planet hunting an escaped prisoner, a very dangerous prisoner. Do not interfere and we will leave your city with only minimal damage. But if you attempt to assist her, your destruction will be absolute."

As the hologram image disappeared, the big one turned towards Robin. "You're still going after her, aren't you?"

Not waiting for a response, Beast Boy jumped in with, "Can we come too?"

The Boy Wonder sent us a smile before nodding his head. "I suppose I could team up, just this once." And with that, the boys started to walk away.

I wanted to go with them. I wanted to prove to my father . . . and to myself, that I wasn't just born to destroy. I wanted to be good, but whatever I did now wouldn't change what I had to do later. There was no point.

I started to turn away again, to go back into hiding, but Robin's voice pulled me back.

"You coming?"

"I'm not the hero type," I started slowly. "Trust me, if you knew what I really am, you wouldn't want me around."

That's when it happened. Robin walked up to me and he placed his hand on my shoulder. I know, it doesn't sound like much . . . but that gentle, comforting touch . . . I rarely got that growing up. This simple action told me that he cared about me. He didn't care what I was. He already accepted me.

"I know enough," he said with a smile.

Looking over his shoulder at Beast Boy and the man in the hoodie, I watched as they both nodded and sent smiles in my direction.

This simple act of kindness caused a warm feeling to grow inside me. It made me feel, for the first time, like I didn't have to be alone. I loved that feeling . . . and I didn't want it to ever go away.

I knew that it would be a bad idea to get too attached to any of the earthlings in this dimension, but I couldn't help it. My whole life I had wanted nothing more than to be accepted by someone who didn't just want to use me for their own personal gain, and this ragtag group seemed to be the perfect fit.

As the three of them turned to head down the street, I found myself falling into step behind them.

* * *

"Fools!" the leader of the Gordanians shrieked through his hologram projector for the second time today. "The Earth scum were warned. Your insolence will be punished. Your city shall be destroyed."

"So, after trashing a pizza place and a perfectly good video store, now we've managed to make a humongous space gecko mad enough to vaporize our entire town?" Beast Boy gushed, as we watched the approach of the space ship. It appeared to be preparing itself to fire its weapons upon Jump City.

"All the fault is yours!" I heard someone snap, and I turned my head slightly to find the alien girl getting right into Robin's face. "I commanded you leave me alone, but you insisted upon the 'being nice'!"

"My fault?!" Robin yelled back at her. "You blast me, you kiss me, but you never stop to mention that they have a gigantic particle weapon?"

Seeing the orange girl and the Boy Wonder starting to lose it caused a fight to break out between Beast Boy and the man that I had learned to be Cyborg.

What were they doing? A giant space ship filled with 'humongous space geckos' was quickly descending upon us, and instead of trying to come up with a plan to save everyone they were arguing with each other. This wasn't going to solve the problem.

"Quiet!" I screamed.

This, thankfully, had the resulting effect that I was hoping for. The group instantly shut up, and four pairs of eyes turned to glare at me.

"Arguing is going to get us nowhere," I informed them. "These creatures want to destroy us. We have to figure out how to stop them."

"She's right," Robin admitted, turning towards the others. "We have to get into that ship. The only way to stop them is to make it to the control room."

"Sure, sounds good," Beast Boy said, nodding his head in agreement. "Just one problem: the ship is up there," he noted, pointing towards the sky. "How are we supposed to get inside it?"

* * *

Using my black energy to form a bubble around the five of us, I managed to float us up and under the bottom surface of the spaceship. By the time I allowed the bubble to disappear, we were standing in a nook along one wall that gave us some cover from any alien creatures that happened to walk by.

Out of the corner of my eye, I caught Beast Boy shiver next to me.

"That dark energy stuff gives me the-" he started to explain, but I sent him an annoyed glare. "Uh . . . I mean, it's cool!"

Ignoring the comment, Robin poked his head around the corner to make sure the coast was clear.

"We have to get to the firing controls. There isn't much time," he said, as he started to head down the hallway.

While the others obediently followed behind Robin, I stopped in the hallway to consider what Beast Boy had said.

He was right. I was different than them. I shouldn't be here. I didn't belong. I'm not even a hero!

"Mind telling me why you're always by yourself?" someone asked, bringing me out of my thoughts. Looking up, I saw Cyborg staring back at me.

"You heard the kid," I admitted with a shrug. "I don't exactly fit in."

Just like Robin had done not too long ago, Cyborg placed one of his big hands on my shoulder. The same, simple touch rekindled the warmth inside me, making me feel accepted.

"He's green, half of me is metal, and she's from space," he rattled off in one breath. "Trust me, you fit in just fine."

If it was possible, his words made me feel even better than his caring touch.

* * *

Blasting our way into the control room, Robin, Cyborg, Beast Boy, the alien, and I split up to take down the group of Gordanians that were present.

I stood back for a moment in amazement as Cyborg slammed both of his fists on the floor, causing vibrations to blast the creatures off of their feet.

A second later, Beast Boy transformed himself into a kangaroo and kicked a couple of the Gordanians away with his feet before going back to human form.

Out of the corner of my eye, I saw one of the aliens heading towards Beast Boy. I tried to make my way over to him, but before I could, the creature smashed both of his arms down against the deck close enough to the shape-shifter that the vibrations sent him flying backwards with a yell.

Stepping in front of Beast Boy, I threw up a small shield with my powers. One punch after another whumped into my shield as I attempted to back up slowly towards the wall. My knees buckled underneath me, causing me to lose my focus to form the shield, and he prepared to flatten us both with his fists.

Before he could, Robin leapt onto his shoulders, surprising the Gordanian and he stumbled backwards. While the rest of the group continued with their attack, I moved over closer to Beast Boy.

"Are you okay?" I asked him.

"Everything is spinning," he moaned, placing his hands on either side of his head, attempting to force everything to be still. "Otherwise, I'm fine."

Wrapping an arm around him, I helped him get back to his feet.

This felt right. For once, I was doing something that I knew was good. This ragtag group of heroes didn't care in the slightest about my past, or where I came from. Here, with them, I was free to be whomever I wanted.

Happiness swam in my veins, but as I glanced up at the battle that was growing around me, I felt sick. The Gordanians were fighting back with everything they had and as I watched, my newfound safe heaven seemed to be teetering on the brink of collapsing.

"Get away from my friends!" I cried out in menace. "Azarath! Metrion! Zinthos!"

* * *

"That's quite a view," I noted, as I stood with my new friends on the little island that was located a few miles from the mainland.

"Somebody oughta build a house out here," Cyborg nodded in agreement.

"Yeah," Beast Boy added with a smile as he nudged me with his elbow. "If you like sunshine and the beach."

After everything that had happened to me today, I was feeling happier than I could ever remember feeling. With Beast Boy looking at me with those big green eyes and bright smile, I couldn't help but let out a smile giggle at his little comment.

"You know, you're kind of funny."

His ears perked up at this. "You think I'm funny? Dude! I know some jokes!"

"I still don't know your name," Robin suddenly spoke up, turning towards the orange-skinned alien.

"In your language, it would be 'Star Fire'," she replied with a genuine smile. "I thank you all for your bravery and help, and I wish to ask permission . . . to remain here. Where the people are most strange . . . but also, most kind."

Secretly feeling the same, I said, "You don't need our permission."

"But if you want our friendship, you've got it," Robin added with a smile.

"Guess we could all use some new friends," Cyborg noted, looking around at the group.

He didn't know how true this was for me. I needed this. Just last night, I was on the brink of despair, and now . . .

"I thought we might want to keep in touch," Robin said, as he dug in his utility belt for something. "So, Cyborg and I designed these," he explained. In his hands were three round yellow devices that were to be used similar to walkie-talkies.

"When there's trouble, you know who to call."


	2. Spellbound

**Chapter 2: Spellbound**

A couple weeks had passed since the Teen Titans had officially formed. The whole team had come together to help build the giant 'T' structure that we now called our home. Life seemed good . . . better than I could have ever dreamed of, but that didn't stop me from worrying.

It was the middle of the afternoon, but I was still huddled up in my room. My bedroom was dimly lit, to my liking. Mystical artifacts and sculptures were set up around the space for decoration, and a ton of books were scattered randomly around the room. My circular bed laid against one wall with its ornate headboard and purple-blue sheets.

With a sigh, I lied down on my back on the bed and closed my eyes. Behind my eyelids, an image of my demonic father appeared, sitting on his giant throne surrounded by lava.

"The gem was born of evil's fire," I began to mouth the prophecy to myself. "The gem shall be his portal. He comes to claim, he comes to sire, the end of all things mortal."

I had it memorized by the time I was five. My father said that they were the words I would have to use in order to –

Snapping my eyes open, I pushed myself up into a sitting position on my bed and tried to push the thought away for the time being.

"Stop it!" I ordered myself. "You're a Titan now. A hero." I blinked at this.

Was I a hero, or was I simply pretending to be something I'm not?

Needing something to help banish these thoughts from my mind, I reached for the book that I had been working on lately and opened it to where I had left off. I quickly got absorbed into the plot.

As my eyes skimmed over the pages, I began to picture the scenes happening in my head.

Malchior, a young knight, was dressed in a suit of armor, and had a dark scarf wrapped around his mouth and nose to allow him to breath while battling the fire-breathing dragon.

I pictured Rorek, the dragon, with his drooling mouth opening wide for a roar and preparing to belch fire, as the warrior stood bravely in front of the flames that shot out and conjured a shield to block them.

When the heat of the fire died down, Malchior advanced across the stones. More fire blasted out, smashing through his shield. He then hurled a ball of energy that exploded against the dragon's chest, sending sparks all over the body and seemed to freeze it in place. However, the beast was still able to breathe fire, and it sent out a new burst.

Leaping backward, Malchior retaliated with a broad beam that hit Rorek hard enough to throw up dense gray smoke. Landing on a high ledge, Malchior got knocked down by a swipe of the dragon's long tail. After a moment to collect himself, the warrior stood and found himself facing off against the monster again. In desperation, the knight opened his mouth to speak a curse, hoping to stop the dragon once and for all.

"Necronom! Hezberek! Mortix!"

Glowing cracks opened in the stones by his feet and darted up towards the dragon. In the process, the entire floor caved in, dropping the beast out of sight amid a great cloud of dust.

"And so it came to pass that I, Malchior of Nol, did lay siege to the dread dragon Rorek," I read the words from the page. "But it did seem the power of Rorek was greater than my magics could defeat, and as the fell beast struck . . ."

The sound of an alarm going off in the Tower regretfully pulled my attention away from the story.

"No! Not now!" I thought. "It was just getting good . . ."

Not wanting to stop it there, I tried to ignore the alarm system and focused back on the page, but a pounding on my bedroom door told me I was wasting my time.

"Hey, Raven!" Beast Boy's voice came through the closed door. "Put the pedal to the metal! We gotta go!"

With a sigh, I reluctantly closed the book and set it aside on my mattress, determined to get back to it as soon as we got back.

* * *

I was thrilled when we managed to take down the evildoer in just a matter of minutes. Desperate to find out what was going to happen next in my book, I hopped back into the Cyborg's car as soon as we took down Kardiak and waited impatiently for everyone else to climb in for the short ride back to the Tower. Once home, I jumped out of the vehicle and hurried back to my room, slamming the door behind me.

I took a seat on my bed and picked up the book that was still lying where I had left it on my mattress. Giving the page a quick scan, I found the line that I had ended on and continued to read.

"But it did seem the power of Rorek was greater than my magics could defeat, and as the fell beast struck . . ."

Knock . . . knock . . . knock . . .

I frowned at my bedroom door. What now?

Pushing the book aside, I walked over to answer the door and found Robin standing on the other side.

"Hey," he started, with a frown of his own. He had a look of concern on his face. "When we got home, you kind of ran to your room and locked the door. Anything you want to talk about?" he asked slowly.

"No," I replied before closing the door in his face.

Heading back to my bed, I picked up the book to attempt to read again, and turned back to the page I was on.

" . . . greater than my magics could defeat, and as the fell beast struck, I . . ."

Knock . . . knock . . . knock . . .

Now I was starting to get mad. Couldn't they tell that I wanted to be alone right now?

Storming back over towards the door, I opened it a crack to find Starfire in the hallway with her long red hair dolled up on the top of her head. Colorful hairclips seemed to be placed at random around the hairdo to help keep it in place.

"I have journeyed to the mall of shopping and discovered the joy of Earthly hair ornaments," the orange alien announced happily. "Do you wish to-?"

"No." With that done, I slammed the door shut again.

Sighing, I picked my book up again.

" . . . and as the fell beast struck, I summoned the forces of my enchanted book. And with a curse more ancient than foul Rorek himself, I . . ."

Knock . . . knock . . . knock . . .

"Yo, Raven!" Cyborg's voice was heard from the other side of the door.

"Dude, open up," added Beast Boy.

By now I was fuming. All I wanted was a couple hours of quiet time so I could read my book. Was that really so hard for these guys to understand? Why couldn't they just leave me alone?

Clutching the book to my chest, I opened the door to give the boys a look that they wouldn't soon forget to show them just how ticked off I was at the moment. By the looks on their faces, they appeared to have gotten the point.

"What?" I snapped at them to emphasize my displeasure.

"We're here tonight with an exclusive offer," Beast Boy started, after they recomposed themselves.

"A once-in-a-lifetime chance to get in on America's fastest-growing sports sensation . . ." Cyborg added.

"The hot new game we just made up . . ." Beast Boy cheered.

" . . . STANKBALL!" they said, finally finishing their big show-and-tell together as Cyborg held up the ball for me to see.

Their 'stankball' appeared to be just a rolled up pile of dirty laundry, but man, it really did stink. I couldn't help wiggling my nose in disapproval at the scent.

Luckily, Cyborg removed the rank-smelling ball away from my face before I had to come up with some clever insult, and in its place Beast Boy held up a black-and-white striped cloak.

"Want to be referee?" he asked, with a huge smile on his face.

Honestly, I did really like the look of that cloak. It was cute, and the style of it matched my favorite blue one, but they chose a bad time to ask me. I really wanted to see what was going to happen to Malchior.

Hoping to finally get some peace and quiet, I gave them my best menacing look. "Go away."

I started to back up to close the door behind me, but Beast Boy wedged himself in to keep it open and give me his best puppy-dog-eyed expression.

"But, pleeeease?" he begged.

My heart sank slightly at the sight. Why did he have to be so cute? It just made this even harder to do.

I sent a black bolt of energy from the gem on my forehead, finally pushing them out so the door could fall closed.

A part of me really hoped that they weren't all going to be mad at me for shooing them away like this. I liked having friends around, but when it came to reading, I hated being interrupted.

"Come on, Raven," I heard Cyborg's voice coming from the hallway. "Everybody loves a good game of Stankball."

"And we need a referee to play the lightning round," Beast Boy prompted.

"No!" I yelled a final time through the door, praying they would just leave.

With a sigh, I started to step away from the door, but then froze as Beast Boy's next words reached my ears.

"Oh, Raven, come on! Why can't you just have fun like normal people?"

. . . Normal people?

I had never pictured myself as being 'normal'. I knew I wasn't, but hearing those words come from him . . . I was surprised at how much it hurt.

"Why are you always locked in your dark room, reading your nasty old books? Why do you have to be so creepy?" he added.

Every sentence he threw at me through the automatic door just weighed heavier and heavier on my heart.

He probably would have continued with his verbal assault against me if it weren't for Cyborg quietly ushering him to back off and leave me alone.

I leaned against my bedroom door as the sounds of their footsteps drifted farther and farther away. Hugging the book to my chest, I thought about what Beast Boy had just said.

"I'm not creepy," I said out loud, trying to convince myself. "I'm just different." As the ache in my chest continued to grow, I made my way once again back to my bed and sat down. "I wish there was someone around here who understood that. Someone I could talk to. Someone more like me."

No longer in the mood to read, I lied on my side on the bed and pulled my legs up into a fetal position. My arm draped across the white book as I closed my eyes, wishing that my friends could accept me for who I am.

* * *

 _"Raven . . ."_

 _I squeezed my eyes shut tighter, not wanting to wake up yet._

 _"Raven . . ."_

 _Sighing, I slowly raised my head. I rubbed a hand over my face to brush away the crust from my eyes before finally opening them to find out who was calling me._

 _Propping myself up on my elbows, I gave a quick scan around my room, but didn't see anyone._

 _"That's weird," I said out loud. "I could've sworn . . ."_

 _"Down here," came the voice again._

 _Glancing down, I stared, puzzled, at the white cover of my latest book._

 _"Hi."_

 _I let out a gasp and moved to shove the book off my bed. Even as I was preforming the action, I knew how silly this whole thing was. Books can't talk. There was no way the voice was actually coming from the object . . . but as the hardback hit the floor with a thud, a cry of pain was heard from the ground._

 _Craning my neck over the side of the bed, I could just make out the cover of the book._

 _"Uh, did you just – "_

 _" – speak?"_

 _"Uh-huh," I mumbled. Carefully, I moved onto my hands and knees so I could see the object better from my position._

 _This couldn't really be happening. Was I seriously having a conversation with a book right now . . .?_

 _"I did," came the reply. "And then you dropped me on my spine."_

 _"Oh, sorry," I said, staring down at the book in shock. "It's just . . . books aren't supposed to talk."_

 _"True, fair maiden, but I am no book."_

 _The novel suddenly opened by itself. I stared in amazement as the pages started flipping quickly through the book, coming to a stop at a half torn page that showed an image of Malchior's eyes._

 _"I am a man. Malchior of Nol, at your service."_

 _"The wizard who faced the dreaded dragon, Rorek?" I asked, reaching down to retrieve the book. Sitting cross-legged on my bed, I set the book down on my sheets._

 _"The wizard who defeated Rorek and who was trapped within these pages by the dragon's final curse," he explained._

 _"Trapped?" I gasped, and quickly tried to tally up the years in my head. "But that battle was almost – "_

 _" – one thousand years ago. And I've been waiting for someone to find me ever since. Raven . . . I have been waiting for you."_

 _For me? He had been waiting for me all these years? Was I supposed to be the one to free him from this curse?_

 _Allowing the black energy to flow into my hand, I reached out to try and preform a spell on him, but I was forced to pull it back in order to use it to cover my eyes when I was met with a blinding flash that shooted out towards the ceiling._

 _"The curse is strong," I explained when I was able to see again. "I'm sorry, but I don't think my powers can break it."_

 _"Maybe not with your powers, but there is a spell that could help release me."_

 _Picking up the book, I slipped out of bed and headed across the room to put it down on the bookstand I had set up on the other side of my room, and then I began to race around the space searching for all the ingredients I would need as Malchior recited them to me. I placed each item out in a circle with the bookstand at one end, and, when I had retrieved everything we would need, me on the other._

 _I already had a bowl full of a variety of different powders going when Malchior told me to add in the flower petals to the mix. Sparks danced in the cup as the small objects landed. I then poured in a glowing blue liquid from a flask and added a pinch of yet another rare powder._

 _"I've never even heard of this spell," I said, as smoke started to rise from the concoction. "Where did you learn it?"_

 _"It's in the Galleon Scrolls."_

 _I glanced up at him, impressed. "You've read the Galleon Scrolls?"_

 _"And the Mornal Archives, and the Stones of Syr." He let out a small chuckle before continuing. "I've been trapped in a book. Not much to do but read."_

 _As I poured in yet another potion, I pondered over the information I had just received._

 _One thousand years' worth of knowledge was burned into this man's mind. It was hard to comprehend that kind of wisdom. There was so much that he could teach me . . . so much that I could learn from him. Maybe, after he was free, he would stick around to teach me some of the spells he knew._

 _"I think it's almost ready," I noted._

 _"Good. There's just one more ingredient."_

 _I froze, scanning the bottles and jars that surrounded me. I had already added in everything that I had laid out in front of me. Had I missed something that he had listed earlier?_

 _Before I could ask him, a page of the book flipped backwards and lashed out like a serpent. There was a brief flash of lightning, and when it cleared a few snippets of my hair dropped into the mixture._

 _Surprised, I reached a hand up to touch the strands of my hair. The side of my face felt slightly warm, and I smelled a hint of something burning in the air, but other then that, I was unhurt._

 _I peered up at the book, hoping for an explanation for what just happened._

 _"A lock of hair from a beautiful girl."_

 _My eyes widened at his words. "Your think I'm beautiful?"_

 _"I truly appreciate all that you are doing for me, Raven," he continued as if I hadn't said anything._

 _"Lets just hope this works," I said, and poured the contents of the cup out into my hand. Blowing them towards the stand, I watched as the pages went flying everywhere and a bright light exploded from the book._

 _Pushing myself back to my feet, I let out a gasp as a black image of Malchior's black, longhaired silhouette was seen through the bright light that was radiating through the page. The image hunched over with a moan of pain as the white light enveloped it, and a pair of long wings sprouted from the image's back._

 _"Malchoir!" I screamed in fright, thinking that something must have gone horrible wrong with the spell._

 _The force of power that was spilling out of the pages sent me flying backwards in one split-second flash. Lifting my head from the floor, I found a loose page from the book that must have been sent flying when the spell had started. It was a full-page drawing of the wizard and dragon facing each other with a label in front of each displaying the character's names. As I studied the image, the two words began to fade away before my eyes and switched places. I blinked at the page in astonishment._

 _"You changed it. Malchior wasn't the wizard – he was the . . ."_

 _What had I done?_

 _Leaping to my feet, I turned and started to dash back towards the circle. There had to be something I could do!_

 _"No!" I cried, and was flung back by a second blast._

 _Through the light, a large, horned, red-eyed silhouette started to take shape. Staring in horror at the creature, the dragon extended its forelegs and dug its claws into the floor. The wings extended and their tips dug into the ceiling. Finally, the fire-eyed head emerged from the white light._

 _As its piercing red eyes stared right back at me, I couldn't help but notice the similarity in the creature's eyes. They appeared frighteningly similar to my father's dark red-eyed stare._

 _"You lied to me," I stated softly, before turning away from him and allowed a few tears to slip from my eyes. "You lied . . . and I gave you what you wanted."_

 _With a low growl, the dragon took flight, bashing a large hole in the ceiling in the process. Huge chunks of the ceiling fell to the ground, and instinctively I used my powers to hold up a black shield around me in defense. I held the shield up until the sounds of flapping wings died out in the distance, before letting it go and stared up at the gaping hole._

 _My father was right. I wasn't meant to be a hero. I had just let loose a huge, fire-breathing dragon out into the world, just like how I was suppose to release my father into this world. My sole purpose for being here was to help others destroy the world . . . and there wasn't anything I could do to stop it._

* * *

Knock . . . knock . . . knock . . .

I slowly blinked open my eyes. Rolling over, I saw the slight hint of sunlight streaming through my closed curtains. Morning? Turning onto my back, I glanced up at the ceiling. The gaping hole that the dragon had left was no longer there.

"It was all a dream," I said softly, and closed my eyes in pure relief. "Just a dream."

"Hey, Raven . . ." A nervous voice spoke up from the direction of my closed bedroom door, sounding a lot like Beast Boy. I sluggishly got myself into a sitting position on my bed as I waited for him to continue. " . . . um, it's, like, almost noon and you haven't come out of your room. So, just in case you're mad, I'm gonna go ahead and say, 'Sorry I called you creepy last night'."

When I didn't respond, I heard a loud sigh come from the hallway.

"Raven, can you just . . . let me know you're okay?"

Moving towards the side of my bed, I pushed myself off the surface and began to slowly walk over to the door.

"Why do you care?" I finally asked through the closed door. "Yesterday, you said I wasn't normal . . . If you really think that, then why would you care if I'm okay or not?"

"You're my friend, Raven. Of course I care," he said, and I felt a warm feeling in my stomach begin to grow as he continued. "I was just frustrated, and in the moment I said some things that I shouldn't have."

I placed my hand against the hard surface in front of me. I took a deep breath before admitting one of the secrets about my childhood. "Growing up . . . I've never felt like I belonged anywhere. I have always felt like the weird one . . . and creepy. And don't try to tell me I'm not."

"Okay. Fine. You're way creepy, but that doesn't mean you have to stay locked in your room." I raised my eyes a bit at his words. "You may have been an outcast at one point, but you're not anymore. Here, you are a part of something." He paused for a moment before adding, "You think you're alone, Raven, but you're not."

A small smile appeared on my face as his words reached my ears. It felt like a huge weight had been lifted from my shoulders.

Opening the door, I took a step closer to Beast Boy, closing the distance between us, and wrapped my arms around his neck.

He would probably never know how much I needed to hear those words from him, but that didn't matter.

This was where I truly belonged.


	3. Terra

**Chapter 3: Terra**

My new life was beginning to feel more normal as the weeks went by.

Fighting villains started to grow on me. I liked how it felt to be a superhero. For the first time in my life, I felt like I was right where I wanted to be. I wasn't just born to destroy. For once, I was doing something respectable, and I loved every minute of it.

My relationships with each of my teammates continued to grow as the days passed. After hearing the comforting words from Beast Boy, I had been trying to spend more time outside of my room. It felt nice to have my friends around, even if I had my head buried in a book while I was in their presence.

Ever since Robin accepted me as a member of his team without question, my bond with him has been extremely tight. Unlike some of the other members of the team, he respects my need for privacy every now and then. Our friendship seemed to grow even closer due to our similar personalities and instincts.

Cyborg slowly become like a big brother to me. Despite his energetic and sometimes childish personality, he can be mature when he needs to be, and he respects my preference for peace and quiet. Even so, he still tries to include me whenever possible, which helped me feel more accepted into the group.

Despite being the only girls on the team, my friendship with Starfire had a bit of a rocky start. Unlike me, Starfire is happy and full of energy all the time. It can get rather tiring to be around her sometimes, but it has been nice to have another girl around to talk to among the boys in our group.

It was my relationship with Beast Boy that was the most confusing. We are so different. Personality-wise we are polar opposites, but this didn't seem to damper my mounting feelings for him.

In an attempt to hide this fact from him, I had grown accustomed to constantly mocking him in the presence of our teammates. However, this didn't stop him from occasionally doing nice things for me though, which piqued my curiosity as to what his feelings for me truly were.

I had never felt like this before. I could feel my blood pressure rising whenever I thought about it . . . but it couldn't happen. Even if he did like me in return, it would never work out. My destiny was going to happen some day, and when it did, it would just cause more pain for the both of us if I allowed that line to be crossed.

I truly believed that keeping my distance from anything romantic would be for the best, but that was no help when other girls came along that Beast Boy seemed to show an interest in.

* * *

My friends and I raced towards the ledge of a sheer drop and came to a stop at the edge. Gathering around, we looked down into the chasm to see a teenage girl with long blond hair. She was cowering with her back against the rock wall, breathing heavily from her dash across the cavern floor. About a football field's length away was a giant scorpion that was quickly closing in the distance to the young girl.

"Titans! Go!" Robin shouted, but before any of us could obey the order, the ground began to tremble under our feet.

All of our eyes turned back towards the girl to find her long blond hair blowing all around her as part of the bridge across the canyon broke loose and was lifted into the air. The girl let out a groan from the effort before finally releasing her hold over the floating rocks so that they landed squarely on top of the scorpion, crushing the creature flat.

Shocked speechless, we could do nothing, but watch as the girl brushed the dust off of her gloved hands before allowing the patch of rock that she was standing on loosen with a quick gesture. The rocks began to lift her up, carrying her to the ledge where we were waiting.

"What?" she asked, staring back at our stunned expressions. "Haven't you ever seen a superhero before?

"I'm Robin," the Boy Wonder said, finding his voice. "We're the –"

"The Teen Titans!" she interrupted excitedly. "Rock on! It's cool to meet you guys. I'm Terra, and you're . . . Cyborg, Raven, Starfire, and . . ." she continued, pointing to each of us in turn.

When Terra finally turned her attention towards our shape-shifter, he instantly started freaking out.

"Boy Beast! . . . uh, I mean, Bass Boot! . . . No!" he stuttered, beginning to panic.

"Beast Boy?" Terra spoke up, helping him out.

This was followed by the green kid letting out a girlish scream, and he turned himself into a turtle, tucking his head and legs into the shell in midair.

"Dude!" Terra cried, laughing at the kid's reaction. "He's hilarious!"

"Hilarious?" Beast Boy asked, poking his head out of his shell, and my heart sank in my chest. I knew where this was heading. "Me? Really?"

Luckily, Starfire chose that moment to step in, preventing anything else from happening between the new girl and Beast Boy.

"Curiosity abounds," Starfire stated, before beginning to fire questions at the poor girl. "Please, where do you come from; how did you get here; what is your favorite color; do you wish to be my friend?"

For the girl's part, I was impressed with her ability to keep up with Starfire's racing excitement. "Um . . . Earth, walked, red, and . . . sure," she rattled off her answers, and was instantly rewarded with a bone grinding hug from the Tamaranian.

"So," Beast Boy said, trying to push his way back into the conversation. His cheeks were starting to turn red, which made my blood boil. "What brings such a cool little chickie to our big groovy city, huh?"

I felt my face growing hot under my hood in embarrassment for him. Was this his attempt at flirting?

"I go where the wind takes me, you know? I get to see new places, meet new people, stomp a few bad guys here and there."

"You mean, you don't have a home?" Robin asked.

"The Earth is my home," she commented, gesturing with her hands. "I've been crashing in a cave on the other side of the hill."

Starfire flew up in front of Terra again, and my heart began to beat faster in my chest. I had a terrible feeling that I knew what was going to happen next.

"Unacceptable!" Starfire cried. "I cannot permit my new friend to slumber in a lonely cave of darkness. Come, you will stay with us." And the alien proceeded to drag the girl in the direction of the Tower.

No! No, no, no.

I could already tell Beast Boy liked this girl. I might not have wanted to act on my feelings towards the green kid, but that didn't mean I wanted to watch some other girl moving in on him.

"Really, I-I'm . . ." Terra stuttered.

"Come on, we've got plenty of room," Cyborg spoke up.

"Yeah! And I can make you laugh some more," Beast Boy added. "I'm hilarious, remember?"

"Well, I guess I could stay one night," Terra said, finally giving in.

I lowered my head slightly, hoping no one would notice that my hands were starting to shake at my sides. As Robin, Cyborg, Starfire, and Beast Boy started to lead Terra towards our home, I took a deep breath and let it out, forcing my emotions over the situation to leave.

* * *

Tossing and turning in bed, I tried to let sleep drift over me, but my mind kept circling with images of Beast Boy and Terra.

The girl seemed to be making herself right at home, and was currently sleeping on the couch in the living room.

My friends seemed to really like her though, and Cyborg had even brought up the idea of having her join the team permanently. If that happened, then what was Beast Boy going to do? Would he ask Terra out?

Clutching the blanket that was on my bed tightly, I squeezed my eyes shut and tried to force the images of Beast Boy and Terra out of my head.

 _"You can't fade away_

 _The way I feel for you_

 _There ain't no word I can say_

 _What I'd do for you_

 _And every single day_

 _I make it through this game called life . . ."_

My eyes snapped open as the sound of someone singing softly reached my ears from the hallway. Sitting up, I listened as the voice traveled from right to left, passing my closed bedroom door.

 _"It's always filled with pain and strife_

 _Reality will cut you like a knife_

 _It ain't right_

 _But with you by my side_

 _We will win the fight_

 _In the battle of dark and light . . ."_

As quietly as I could, I got up from my bed, made my way over to the door, and pressed my ear against the surface.

 _"Take my hand, hold it tight_

 _When we dance I feel alright . . ."_

As the voice continued down the hallway, the singing switched to humming.

Opening the door a crack, I peeked my head out to see Beast Boy's back facing me as he walked away. What was he doing up this late?

Frowning, I quickly slipped out of my room, allowing the door to close quietly behind me, and silently followed my crush down the hallway.

I made sure to stay at least fifty steps behind Beast Boy as he continued down the long corridor. I thought he was going to keep going until he reached the living room, but he turned right and pushed through the door that had a sign labeled stairs on it.

Creeping up to the door, I pressed my ear against it until I heard his footsteps grow fainter, and then opened the door to follow him down as my curiosity grew.

The sound of Beast Boy's footsteps echoed against the walls as he hurried down. I took my time, not wanting the echoes of my footsteps to give me away. I paused when I heard the screech of the hinges when he opened the door at the bottom of the stairs that led outside, and waited until I heard it swing shut before hurrying down the last couple of flights.

Reaching the bottom, I peeked through the small square-shaped window that was on the door and was able to make out the shape-shifter just as he was about to jump down onto the wall of rocks that I knew led down towards the water below. It wasn't long before he was out of sight.

Frowning, I pushed open the door, and slowly made my way towards the edge of the grassy field and peeked over the edge. Beast Boy was already almost halfway down to the water's edge.

Curiosity growing, I began to sluggishly make my way down the rocks, being careful not to slip. I was only about a third of the way down when I realized that the shape-shifter had made it down to the bottom and was taking a seat next to . . . Terra?

I froze, and my heart started to beat faster in my chest.

Beast Boy and Terra . . .

Desperate to hear what they were saying, I forced my legs to keep moving until I was about a fourth of the way to the bottom and found myself a hiding place in the shadows. Wrapping my dark blue cloak around me, I was almost invisible against the wall of rocks. Pricking my ears, I focused on the pair that was sitting below me.

There was a short pause before Terra's voice reached my ears.

"I can't stay," she said softly.

"Why not?" Beast Boy asked.

"Places to go, people to see." She shrugged, not looking at the green boy that was sitting next to her.

"Come on. You know you want to stay," he said, and then started to count off all the things that he thought might convince her to stay on his fingers. "We've got free cable, indoor plumbing . . . and all the tofu you can eat."

"Tofu?" I could her the hint of humor in her voice. "You sure know how to charm a girl." There was another short pause before, "I-I guess I could hang out for one more day."

To my dismay, Beast Boy jumped up, excited about this.

"Awesome! We're gonna have so much fun! And I can't wait to see what your powers do when you really cut 'em loose."

What happened next, happened so fast I almost missed it. Terra's hair blew up around her, and suddenly Beast Boy was lifted into the air and was dumped back onto the hard surface. It took me a second to realize that Terra had used her powers to pull the rock that Beast Boy had been sitting on out from under him. As soon as this thought entered my mind, I was up on my feet and was about to spring down to give the blond chick a piece of my mind, but . . .

"Sorry! I'm sorry. I'm so stupid! Don't tell! Please don't tell!"

"Terra, it's okay," Beast Boy assured gently, shrugging his shoulders as he continued. "You can't totally control your powers. So what?"

I slowly sank back down into my hiding place, not taking my eyes off the figures below.

"Promise you won't tell anybody – ever!"

"Sure," Beast Boy said, trying to brush the issue off, but Terra didn't want to hear that.

"Swear it!"

"Okay! Okay! I promise," Beast Boy swore, holding his hands up in surrender.

Not wanting to hear any more, I repeated a spell under my breath, allowing the dark form of a raven to appear around me, which started to swallow me up. Before I disappeared though, Beast Boy's final words echoed in my ears.

"But really, it's no big deal. If my friends knew, they'd still like you."

And then I was back in my room.

* * *

"Well, guys, uh, it's been real," Terra said, as she shyly took a couple steps backwards towards the door. She had stayed to have lunch with us, but now she had a yellow backpack hanging off her shoulders. "Seriously, thanks for everything, but I should – "

Terra turned, trying to make her way out of the door, but Cyborg stepped in front of her to block her way.

"Don't even think about it," he said with a smile, and the girl turned back to question the rest of us.

"Okay, what's going on?"

"Well . . ." I let out in a sigh.

" . . . we talked it over, and . . ." Cyborg continued for me, but Starfire flew over before he could get the rest out.

" . . . we wish for you to stay here, with us!" she replied with a giggle.

"We think you'd make a great addition to our team," Robin added.

"So . . . want to be a Titan?" Beast Boy asked, holding out a brand new communicator for her.

She stared at the device that was in his hand. "Me? Really?"

"Of course, you'll need more training," Robin spoke up, and I could feel my face growing hot. I quickly pulled my hood up over my head, knowing what was coming next. "I know you have trouble controlling your powers, and we can help."

I heard the soft thump of the communicator hitting the carpeted floor, before turning my back to the scene.

"You told him?!" I heard Terra cry in outrage.

"I didn't!" Beast Boy attempted to defend himself.

"You had to've! No one else knew," Terra shouted back, and I lowered my head. "You promised! You lied to me! You lied!"

"Terra, no! Wait!"

I felt Robin's eyes burning into me as the sounds of running footsteps slowly disappeared, but I didn't turn back to look at him. Instead, I headed over to the couch and grabbed the book that I had left on the table, before swiftly exiting the room.


	4. Betrothed

I know this episode in the series was more focused on Starfire than Raven. The last section of this chapter focuses on Beast Boy and Raven. Thanks for reading . . .

* * *

 **Chapter 4: Betrothed**

I had just finished my morning meditation up on the roof of the Titan's Tower and was heading back to my room when I saw Robin, Cyborg, and Beast Boy staring in the direction of Starfire's open bedroom door.

"What's going on?" I asked in my monotone voice, as I drew closer to the group.

Before any of them could respond, the orange alien flew by us with huge, heavy looking boxes in her hands.

"Uh, Starfire?" Cyborg shyly questioned.

"Hmm?" she mumbled, as she set the containers down and turned to head back towards her room.

"Are you going somewhere?" Beast Boy asked, prying for information.

Starfire paused, and turned back to face us, a small frown on her face. "I am leaving for Tamaran," she admitted.

I nodded in the direction of where a pile of boxes were siting, right in the middle of the hallway. Apparently, she had been packing for awhile. "And you're taking all your stuff because . . .?" I let the question hang, as we waited for her response.

A small smile appeared on her face, but the happiness didn't reach her eyes. "I am not ever coming back."

"What?!" Cyborg gasped at her.

"Starfire, what's wrong?" Robin asked, concern written all over his face.

Beast Boy and I just stared at her in shock.

She wasn't really going to leave . . . Was she?

"Nothing is wrong," Starfire said, trying to reassure us. She paused before continuing. "I am . . . getting married."

* * *

"You're getting married?" Robin exclaimed yet again.

After a failed attempt on Robin's part to convince Starfire to remain on Earth, I suggested that we all accompany the young alien to her home planet. If Starfire was going to get married, I figured we should all be there for it. We had been traveling in the T-ship for a couple of hours now, but Robin was still having a hard time letting it go.

"Indeed." Starfire nodded. "And I cannot wait to see Tamaran. I have been having a bit of the sick-home feeling lately, and I am eager to introduce my home planet to you, my friends."

"You're getting married?" Robin questioned again. The repetition was starting to give me a headache.

"Yeah, uh, anyone we know?" I spoke up. Maybe if he could gain a little more information on what was happening he would finally shut up.

"Oh, I have never met him. My betrothed has been chosen for me by the Grand Ruler of Tamaran," she explained nervously.

"You're getting married to someone you've never met?!" Robin shrieked into his microphone. I cringed at the sound. I guess that only made things worse . . .

The young alien shrugged her shoulders. "It is the way of my people."

"But, Starfire – "

"My home!" Starfire gasped, finally shutting Robin up. Glancing over towards her compartment, I saw that she had her face pressed up against the glass that surrounded her. "Is it not the most beautiful place your eyes have ever observed?" she exclaimed in pure delight.

Staring out of my window, I took a look at the landscape below me. The ground was barren, scattered with immense, twisted rock formations.

"Uh . . . sure?" I replied with a frown.

Is this really what Tamaraneans took for beauty here?

* * *

"Friends," Starfire announced, as she laid a hand on one of the giant shoulders of a huge Tamaranean. "I wish you to meet my k'norkfa, Galfore. He raised me from the time I was very small."

I let out a low moan when I heard Beast Boy start to laugh.

Taking a couple steps forward the green kid pointed a finger towards the giant. "So this dude is your nanny?"

I held my breath as the man stared down at him, anger written all over his face.

"You find that amusing, green one?!" he questioned, his voice booming around the entrance hall.

Our teammates laughter died instantly and was replaced by a scared, slack-jawed shudder.

I let a shy smile appear on my face. Served him right for teasing the guy.

"I have missed you Galfore," Starfire spoke up, causing the alien to turn his stare away from Beast Boy.

"And I have missed you," he replied before kneeling, and bowing his head to the redhead, " . . . Princess Starfire."

"Princess?!" I cried out in surprise. Next to me, the rest of our friends were gasping at the news.

"Oh, yes . . ." Starfire replied shyly. "I am . . . second in line for the throne. Perhaps I forgot to mention?" She let out a nervous laugh, before turning to follow Galfore down the hallway.

I stared after the orange alien in shock.

"Did you know about this?" I heard Cyborg ask, and turned to see him looking at Robin, who looked annoyed to say the least.

* * *

My friends and I were just entering what appeared to be the thrown room, when Galfore's thundering voice echoed through the large room.

"All hail the Grand Ruler of Tamaran!" he cried, as we headed to join Starfire up front.

As Galfore stepped aside, a dark brunette appeared out on the platform. A metal 'M' plate was plastered onto her face so that the two end piece slide down the sides of her cheeks. It seemed to be the Tamaranean form of a crown.

"Blackfire!" Starfire gasped.

"Hello, sister dear," the woman stated, staring back at Starfire. "I'm sure you're wondering who you'll be spending the rest of your life with." Stepping to the side, Blackfire gestured towards a green slimy blob that had multiple tentacles springing from its body. "Starfire, meet your groom . . . Glrdlesklechhh!"

"My . . . groom?" Starfire stuttered. "But he is . . . I cannot . . ."

"You can, and you will. You see, this is the Exalted Sklerch of the swamp moons of Drenthax Four," Blackfire said, explaining the situation that they had been put under. "Since his invasion army is parked right outside our castle, I have arranged your marriage to help us save our planet from annihilation. If you refuse to marry this creature, we can all kiss Tamaran goodbye."

* * *

Two Tamaranean guards escorted Robin, Cyborg, Beast Boy, and I to another room to wait, while Galfore showed Starfire where she could prepare herself for the wedding.

We were all pretty on edge after everything that had just happened. If Starfire really went through with that wedding ceremony, not only were we going to lose a friend, but also a member of our team. No one seemed to be taking this news harder than Robin.

"We can't let Starfire go through with this!" he cried. He was pacing back and forth in the spacious room, which he had been doing since the guards had left us alone, his hands clenched in tight fists at his sides.

"Come on, man. You sure you're not just, you know . . . jealous?" Cyborg asked with a slight hint teasing in his voice.

I had known for a while now that Robin did indeed have feelings for Starfire, and the alien girl clearly shared the same emotions for the Boy Wonder. They had never been good at hiding the many obvious signs of their feelings for each other. I wasn't surprised that Cyborg and Beast Boy, who were both so easily distractible, had been able to put the pieces together as well.

"Of that ugly, smelly whatever-it-is?" Robin defended himself instantly. The reproach came so naturally from him that I would have believed him, if I hadn't been living in the same building with him for so long. "You saw her face, Cyborg. She doesn't even like him!"

"True, but maybe she doesn't need to," I said, stepping closer to them. "Things are different here. Who are we to question her culture?"

"How do we even know any of this is real?" Robin snapped back before starting to dish out orders. "Cyborg and Beast Boy, check out the Drenthax fleet. Raven, see what you can learn about this . . . thing she's marrying."

"And you?" Cyborg asked.

Turning away from us, Robin said, "I need to see Starfire," and headed out the door before we could say anything else.

"Can you believe that guy?" Cyborg asked, not taking his eyes off of the door that our leader had just stormed through.

"I know," Beast Boy complained, gesturing wildly in the direction of the exit as he continued. "Why doesn't he just tell Starfire how he feels? She clearly likes him too."

"It's not that simple," I tried to explain to him.

"Yeah, it is," he insisted, staring right at me. I don't think I had ever seen him look so serious. "If you like someone, you should tell them. Why wait?"

I felt a tingling sensation on the back of my neck as I stared back at the shape-shifter.

"Come on, BB," Cyborg spoke up, heading towards the door himself. "Let's check out those ships."

Beast Boy's eyes lingered on me, before he finally turned and ran to catch up with Cyborg.

As the door slammed shut behind them, I slowly let out the breath I had been holding.

Was he right? Was it wrong for me to keep my feelings for him bottled up simply because I was worried about what was to come? It would be nice to just let go . . . To let myself be truly happy for once.

Even if he wound up hating me in the end . . .


	5. Titan Rising

**Chapter 5: Titan Rising**

A couple weeks had passed since Starfire's almost wedding. I had to admit, I was glad things were back to normal and that the orange alien had decided to return with us.

I was sitting in my meditation form by the roof's edge of Titans Tower. Behind me, Robin, Cyborg, Starfire, and Beast Boy were busy playing a game of volleyball. I could just make out the sounds of the ball being smacked back and forth as I did my best to concentrate on my breathing.

"Azarath Metrion Zinthos . . . Azarath Metrion Zinthos . . ." I chanted softly to myself.

I tried to keep my mind clear like I usually do during my meditation periods, but I couldn't get what Beast Boy had said to me out of my mind. His words had been circling in my head ever since that day on Starfire's home planet.

"If you like someone . . ." I mouthed to myself, pausing in the middle of my chanting. ". . . you should tell them."

"Raven, heads up!" came a shout from behind me.

A second later, I sensed their white ball hurtling towards me. Sending out my telekinesis powers, I managed to stop the ball from hitting me in the back of my head just in time. I sent an annoyed look to the group, before sending the ball rocketing back to Beast Boy, causing it to slam into him, knocking him over. My heart clenched slightly at the sight of him on the ground, but I forced the emotion down.

"Yow!" he yelled in surprise. "Thanks, uh . . . good save," he commented, as he pushed himself back to his feet.

"Are you sure you don't want to play, Raven?" I heard Robin ask.

"Yes, please," Starfire cried. I could picture the orange alien jumping up and down in excitement, but I didn't turn around to look. "You must volley the ball with us!"

"Come on! I'll play you with one hand behind my back," Cyborg added.

"I can't," I said, over my shoulder. "I have to meditate."

Seconds later, I heard the ball go flying over the net again.

Closing my eyes, I tried to tune everything else out. I was just about to return to chanting when Beast Boy's voice was heard again.

"Heads up, again!"

Enough was enough. I couldn't focus with these distractions.

Instead of stopping the ball again, I floated off to one side, allowing the sphere to fly passed me and off the roof.

"Oh, no!" came the upset cry from my teammates.

I couldn't help the small smile that grew on my face at their response.

I heard the soft footsteps of Beast Boy approaching to my right, and knew he was planning to fly down to retrieve the ball. Before he reached the edge though, the white ball suddenly sailed back up from below to roll across the concrete and stopped at his feet. My friends and I stared at the ball, baffled by its sudden reappearance. We didn't have to puzzle over it for long though.

A slender silhouette slowly rose into view. Long hair could be seen blowing in the breeze, and the figure's hands were planted on her hips, as she stood on a floating object. Due to the sun blinding us, it wasn't until the figure spoke that we realized who it was.

"So, which team am I on?"

"Terra!" cried Starfire and Beast Boy at the same time.

I felt a tightness in my chest again at the sound of excitement that came from Beast Boy, and moved to place my hood over my head before turning away from the scene.

"Oh, hello, long-lost friend!" I heard Starfire greet. "You remember me, yes?"

"Of course, Starfire," she replied, her voice sounding strangled. "I still have bruises from the last time you hugged me."

"Terra!" Beast Boy cried again. "You're . . . I mean, I . . . how's it . . . heh . . . wassup?"

I felt my cheeks getting hot, and was glad that I put my hood up when I did.

"Well, if it isn't my favorite little rock-and-roller!"

"Cyborg!" Terra greeted in return before moving on. "Robin! What's shaking?"

"Good to see you again," he replied.

"Good?! Is he kidding?" Beast Boy spoke up again. "It's great to see you again! I didn't think I'd ever see you again!"

I squeezed my eyes tightly shut trying to block out the conversation that was going on behind me.

"Raven, wake up!" Beast Boy called, dragging me in regardless. "Terra's back! Isn't that awesome?"

"Super," I replied sarcastically, glancing over my shoulder. "Just help yourself to anything in the fridge, and don't forget to lock the door when you leave."

"Actually, I kinda wasn't planning on leaving this time," she explained. "I'm ready to take you guys up on your offer. I want to be a Teen Titan."

No! No, no, no, no, no. She can't join the team! Not now! Not when I was just starting to consider admitting my feelings to Beast Boy.

Luckily, the rest of the team seemed hesitant about the idea as well.

"Got it. Sorry," Terra said, backing off a couple steps. "Didn't realize the offer had an expiration date."

Robin laid a hand on Terra's shoulder, stopping her retreat.

"The offer didn't expire, we're just . . . concerned," he explained.

"Yeah," Beast Boy admitted slowly. "It's 'cause, well, um, last time when you kind of freaked out and ran away, you didn't exactly . . . uh . . . you weren't completely, uh –".

"You couldn't control your powers," I finished for him, stepping closer.

"Hel-lo?" Terra sang, smiling broadly. "That's why I left! Robin said I needed practice, so I've been practicing."

Before anyone could respond to that, the emergency alarm started going off, and all eyes turned towards the door that lead back inside the Tower.

"Trouble," Cyborg commented, before heading inside with Beast Boy and Starfire close behind him.

Robin and I took a couple steps in that direction, but I paused when I heard him speak up.

"Are you coming or not?"

Glancing over my shoulder, I saw the back of Robin's head as he looked back at Terra.

"Does this mean I'm on the team?"

"It means we could use your help."

With a satisfied nod, Terra runs passed us for the door, brushing her arm against me in the process.

A gasp escaped my lips, and my body stiffened slightly as three images quickly flashed by behind my eyes. Each one showed an image of Terra desperately struggling to rein in her powers, and then one of Slade's face . . .

Blinking my eyes, I found myself back on the Tower's roof with Robin standing in front of me. Still dazed by the sudden vision, I jumped slightly when Robin moved to lay a hand on my shoulder.

"Everything okay?" he asked, obviously concerned.

"Can't tell," I said, turning to glance at the door that Terra had just disappeared through. "Are you sure it's safe to have her around?"

"Not entirely," he admitted. His mask moved slightly as he spoke, and I could picture his eyes narrowing in thought. "But everyone deserves a second chance."

And with that, he turned away from me, and headed after our friends.

* * *

Later that afternoon, the six of us gathered on the couch in the living room. Half empty soda cans and an open pizza box laid out in front of us with a single piece left in it.

"And the last slice of pizza goes to . . ." Cyborg says. Reaching for the slice, he flicks his wrists causing the piece to spin around like a game wheel before he finally comes to a stop pointing at our new member. " . . . Terra!"

"Seriously, Terra," Robin spoke up as Terra reached for her winning slice. "Great job tonight. We're glad to have you on the team."

"And we are most mirthful to claim you as our friend," Starfire added.

I just sat there quietly with my hood pulled up. My hands clenched into fists when out of the corner of my eye, I saw Beast Boy transform into a puppy and bound happily into Terra's lap before starting to lick her face."

"Thanks, guys. Really, for everything, . . . but you shouldn't," she said with a shrug when Beast Boy had returned to his spot again. "I'm just doing my job, you know? It's no big deal."

"Well, it's a big deal to us," Beast Boy boosted, and I turned my eyes away from the scene as he continued. "Good friends don't come along every day, you know?"

"Alright, y'all," Cyborg announced, getting to his feet. "Cyborg is shutting down." And he started to head around the couch to go to his room.

"We should all get some sleep," Robin added. "We may have stopped Slade tonight, but we need to figure out what he's planning tomorrow. Good night."

"Pleasant shlorvaks!" Starfire said as she got up to follow Robin out.

"Night," I called to them, before getting up to head to the kitchen to get myself a cup of tea before going to bed.

I had just pulled the box out from one of the cabinets, when I noticed Beast Boy starting to move closer to Terra who was still sitting on the couch.

"So . . ." he said, leaning closer to her. "How did you like you first day as a Titan?"

"It was cool," Terra exclaimed. "You know, I really appreciate you guys giving me a second chance."

"No problem," Beast Boy said with shrug. "I can't believe how fast you were able to get control of your powers. You were only gone for a couple of months."

"I haven't been doing much else lately," I heard Terra say as I shook out the contents from one of the tea bags into the hot water I now had in my mug.

"Well . . . then how about a break?" Beast Boy asked. I heard a slight hint of nerves in his voice, and looked over at the two sitting on the couch. "Do you want to go out . . . you know . . . on a date?"

My eyes bulged and my mouth gaped open in shock. I nearly dropped my mug in surprise.

"R-really?" I heard Terra stutter. "Tonight?"

"Why not?" Beast Boy asked. "We could catch a late movie."

There was a short pause. Holding my breath, it felt like my heart was going to beat out of my chest before Terra spoke again.

"Yeah, sure," she said, "I'd love to."

The air around me suddenly felt cold, and I wrapped my cloak tighter around me as Beast Boy excitedly jumped up from the couch. Pulling Terra with him, he dashed towards the door, not even glancing in my direction.

"Awesome!" I heard him cry. "This is going to be great," and then the door closed behind them, leaving me alone with my broken heart.

* * *

My stomach felt like it was twisting in knots as I slowly made my way to my bedroom. My whole body was feeling numb. All I wanted to do was lay down and pretend like none of this was happening.

For the first time since leaving my father's domain, I felt like my life was going out of control. I thought I could be happy just being friends with Beast Boy, but not after this. Seeing him with another girl just made me realize how much more I wanted from my relationship with him . . . and now it might be too late.

I entered my room in a daze, and unclipped my cloak from my shoulders, allowing the material to fall to the ground before pulling the covers back on my bed and crawling in.

Squeezing my eyes shut, I tried to will myself to sleep, but images of Beast Boy and Terra hanging out together danced behind my closed eyelids.

As I lay there, picturing Beast Boy walking hand-and-hand with Terra, an awful pain started to gnaw deep inside my chest. As the hours slowly passed by, the pain only seemed to intensify. I wrapped my arms around my abdomen in an attempt to stall the nausea I was feeling, as a couple tears managed to escape down my cheeks.

* * *

I spent the next several hours like that, tossing and turning in bed, trying to get my brain to shut off, but it was no use. It was almost one o'clock in the morning when I finally gave up. There was no way I would be able to get any rest with all these emotions coursing through me.

Sighing, I pushed the covers off of me as I moved to sit up. Getting to my feet, I reached down to grab my discarded cloak and threw it back into place on my shoulders as I headed towards the hallway. Hoping that some TV would help get my mind off of Beast Boy, I turned to head in the direction of the living room.

When the doors slid opened, I walked into the living room and paused at the top of the stairs. The TV was already turned on. I was sure we had turned it off before heading to bed. I didn't recognize the movie that was playing. It appeared to be some kind of romantic, chick flick.

As the doors slid quickly closed behind me, I thought I heard the sound of someone sobbing. Figuring the sounds were coming from the movie, I decided to ignore it and headed over to the kitchen hoping that a cup of tea would help calm my emotions.

"Raven?"

I jumped at the sound, and spun around to find a red-eyed Beast Boy peeking his head over the couch.

"Beast Boy . . .?" I heard him sniffle once, and my heart plummeted. "Are you okay?"

"Fine," he sighed, and turned back around to watch the movie. "What are you doing up?"

"Couldn't sleep," I noted, turning back to my tea. "Where's Terra?"

There was a long pause before I heard the soft reply. "She left."

The grief in his voice caused my stomach to churn. He was usually so happy and energetic that seeing this side of him just felt wrong.

Reaching up to grab another cup, I asked, "Do you want to talk about it?"

When he didn't respond, I thought it would be best to remain silent. If he wanted to talk to me, he would. Picking up both cups, I headed over to the couch and handed one to the shape-shifter and was rewarded by a soft thank you. Nodding my head in acknowledgment, I turned my attention to the movie he was watching.

"You were right," he said after a moment of silence. "We never should have allowed her to join the team."

Not saying anything, I turned my head to look at him, hoping he would continue.

"The whole time we were out together, I could tell she was hiding something. She seemed . . . distracted. Like her mind was somewhere else. Then, near the end of the date . . . "

I rested my hand gently on his knee, prompting him to go on.

"She started asking me these weird questions. Things like . . . _'If you knew something bad about me, would you still be my friend?'_ "

I froze, and slowly pulled my hand back. My throat had gone dry, but I managed to get my next words out.

"Something bad? Did she explain?"

Beast Boy kept his eyes glued to the TV. "Someone helped her get control of her powers."

"Who?" I asked, setting my half empty cup on the table in front of us.

"Slade."

My eyes widened in shock. "Slade?"

Shaking his head, he placed his cup down next to mine. "How could she do that? Going to one of our enemies for help?"

"She's working for him now?"

Beast Boy shrugged his shoulders. "That appears to have been the deal. Slade agreed to help Terra gain control of her powers, and she joined Slade as his apprentice."

When the last word had left his mouth, Beast Boy morphed into mutt and lay down with his front paws and head in my lap. Baffled at the sudden change in position, I struggled to decide what I was now supposed to do with my arms. Hesitantly, I eventually lowered one hand to rest on his head and scratched him softly, slightly pleased when I soft moan escaped the green dogs lips.

Turning away from him, I tried to think of something to help cheer him up . . . but what could I say? I was going to turn into a traitor myself. Anything I said would just be hypocritical later.

"I'm sorry, Beast Boy."


	6. The Beast Within

**Chapter 6: The Beast Within**

"You wimps think you can take down Adonis?" our newest enemy cried out. He was a huge man, dressed in a red robot-like suit. The outfit covered his whole body so that only his head was visible. "Bring it on!"

Beast Boy got himself back to his feet from when Adonis had thrown him back against a wall in the laboratory building.

"Dude, it is totally brunged . . . branged," he stumbled, putting his hands on his hips.

"Ohh, bad grammar," I said, in my monotone voice. "That oughta scare him."

Turning to face me, Beast Boy sent me an annoyed look and a vein in his forehead started to throb. I had to bite my lower lip to keep myself from laughing at his infuriated expression. Luckily, Robin spoke up, drawing our attention back to the battle.

"Titans! Go!"

One second, Robin's hands were empty and the next he had his fighting staff ready to go. He leaped towards the towering enemy with a yell. Adonis blocked his swing easily and knocked Beast Boy away who had charged at him in the form of a wolf.

Cyborg, Starfire, and I fired our weapons at him together in a three-way crossfire, putting Adonis off balance for a second.

Running pass the line of cages that were filled with animals against one wall, Robin came in for another hit. He dealt with a brief tussle with the enemy before one armored hand closed around his staff and the other delivered a crashing jab that sent Robin all the way up to the ceiling.

Adonis raised the staff that was now in his hands and bent the metal into an arch as easily as if it were a piece of licorice. A beefy growl escaped his lips as he tossed the toy over his shoulder.

"You're just making me more ripped!" he explained.

From all our effects, the man didn't seem to be the least bit tired.

Starfire sent a few starbolts towards his face and chest, before lifting a cabinet off the ground, letting it fly in the direction of Adonis with a yell. Crouching down, he allowed the furniture to land on his upper back and shoulders.

"No pain, no gain!" he said, with a low groan and heaved the weight back at Starfire, which hit her right in the face and sent her flying back.

Letting fury take me over, I extended my powers out, allowing a black shadow to creep over the massive body to stop Adonis cold. As he strained against my hold, Cyborg moved in to help. Just when I was starting to think we had won, Adonis wrenched himself free, sending Cyborg and I flying back a couple feet. Before I could get my bearings back, Adonis leaped at me, pinning me onto the ground by my shoulders.

"Let me go!" I cried out, wiggling in his hold.

"You're feisty," I heard him purr in my ear.

I shivered at the feeling of his breath on my face, and frowned as I caught him staring at me with a leering smile on his face. Desperate to get away from his intense stare, I used my powers to sink through the floor, allowing me to slip through his grasp.

I reappeared in the room moments later in time to see Cyborg throwing punch after punch at the man, forcing Adonis back with each hit.

"Come on, big man! Show me what you got!" Cyborg yelled, as he attached the man. "Show me what you got!"

Suddenly, Adonis reached out with a hand to grab one of Cyborg's fists, squeezing it tight, before sending him flying through one of the walls.

By this point, Adonis was clearly feeling pretty pleased with himself.

"Nobody out-muscles Adonis!" I heard him cry out in victory, as me and my teammates worked on trying to pull ourselves back together.

"Oh, yeah?" an all too familiar voice questioned, and a small smile grew on my face as I glanced to my left to see Beast Boy stepping forward. "Well, my muscles may be small and ropy, but they're not . . . I mean . . ."

My smile instantly turned into a frown as I groaned inwardly, shaking my head at his attempt at a catchy remark.

Before he could try to finish his sentence, a roar drowned him out as Adonis rushed at him with fists raised. Skidding across the floor to avoid the strike, Beast Boy quickly became a bull and charged at him. Planting both enormous hands on the horns of the animal, Adonis forced the shape-shifter to a stop before slinging him into a table. Seconds later, a screaming monkey hurtled back at the man from the wreckage, which promptly got smacked down as well. Trying a tiger, Beast Boy ran at him once more, but he only got knocked down again.

"What's the matter, wuss?" Adonis taunted our green friend. "Don't you know how to fight like a man?"

"I'm not a man," Beast Boy defended himself. "I'm an animal!"

The fight continued as Beast Boy morphed between a roaring Sasquatch, to a rhinoceros, to an ankylosaurus, to a lion, and then finally a huge grizzly bear.

Getting to my feet, I took a couple steps in the direction of the fight. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Robin, Starfire, and Cyborg stepping over to join me. I heard Starfire gasp as we realized that the two opponents started to draw closer to a couple of large storage tanks that sat in one corner.

"Beast Boy, careful!" Robin called out, attempting to warn our friend. "The chemicals!"

As the words were leaving Robin's mouth, we saw the green bear slam Adonis into the vessels along the wall, rupturing them and releasing a flood of glowing green liquid and vapor. As we watched helpless from the sidelines, the contents gushed over both of the fighters, but the crazed shape-shifter didn't let up for a second. Finally, Beast Boy stepped back, allowing Adonis to slump to the floor in defeat. Resuming to human form, we watched as Beast Boy stared down at the man who was now groaning into the floor.

"Who's the tough guy now?" he questioned the body that was laying in front of him, before turning to head in our direction, green liquid still clinging to his hair and shoulders.

I raised my eyebrows in surprise. His voice had taking on a new fiercer edge that I had never heard before. It didn't sound right coming from the lighthearted jokester.

"Um . . . good job," Robin noted, as the green kid drew closer.

"Nice intensity," Cyborg added, but Beast Boy just walked right passed him.

"Yeah," I said, narrowing my eyes at him. "Have any good freak-outs lately?"

This finally drew a response from him. Turning back, he got right up into my face causing me to flinch at the unsuspecting closeness.

"I just got sick of being pushed around," he stated, using that cross tone again. Narrowing his eyes, he silently dared me to question him again.

I felt my heart skip a beat as I looked into his eyes and saw something that I had never seen before. I had watched him transform into many different animals during my time with him, but every time he returned to human form, the animal side always seemed to shrink away. But now, staring back into his eyes, I could tell that something was wrong.

* * *

Over the next couple of days, Beast Boy's personality continued to change and I was quickly growing more concerned.

Ever since our fight against Adonis, Beast Boy had been spending increasingly more time alone in the workout room. The once happy-go-lucky prankster was now taking everything so seriously. Robin even told us he saw the shape-shifter eat ham and eggs. Beast Boy would never eat meat. I was really starting to worry about him.

Trying to keep my mind off of Beast Boy's changing personality, I did what I usually do: turned to books. Getting lost in a book had helped me get through many things in my life before, and I was hoping that this wouldn't be any different.

I had spent a couple hours reading in the living room when Cyborg and Robin came in, wanting to get an action movie going. Ordinarily, Beast Boy would have been down to join them for an action filled movie, but he hadn't been seen all afternoon. Lately, the shape-shifter seemed to be enjoying his privacy, so I didn't think much about it.

As the movie started, I quickly realized that I wasn't going to be able to concentrate on the words in there anymore and decided to leave my friends to their show to return to my room for some peace and quiet.

Too caught-up in the world I was reading about, I didn't want to put the book down long enough to make it to my room and attempted to continue with the story as I walked. This turned out to be a very bad idea.

Too engrossed in my book, I didn't notice that someone was walking down the hallway in the opposite direction. I was almost to my room when I felt something bump against my shoulder. Startled from the unexpected contact, a small gasp escaped my lips and I dropped my book onto the floor. I bent down to pick it up before turning to see who I had bumped into to see Beast Boy continuing to stroll down the hallway, his hands in tight fists at his sides.

"Sorry," I said, the word leaving my mouth before I even registered what I was doing. His attitude had become so out of control lately that anything could set him off. I didn't want to start something.

The word caused him to stop and he turned back to face me, a frown on his face.

"You better be," he scolded me in that angry tone that I had quickly come to despise. "Why don't you look where you're going?"

He started to turn back to continue down the hallway, but I couldn't let him just walk away after that. I had had feelings for him almost since the first moment I saw him, but this guy that he was turning into . . . I didn't like this Beast Boy at all.

"On second thought, I'm not sorry, and you're a jerk," I yelled at him.

That did it.

Turning back, he stormed over to me, his frown changing into a glare.

"You know, Raven," he started, getting right into my face. "I've been a really nice guy for a really long time. I've put up with your insults and your attitude, and I've had it!" He leaned closer to me before going on. "Consider this a warning. As of tonight, Mr. Nice Guy has left the building."

Having his face inches from mine, he stared at me with such hatred in his eyes that made me want to run to my room and curl up in my bed. I knew I had been a bit of a bully towards him, but that was only in an attempt to keep my growing feelings for him at bay.

I didn't want him to know how much his words were hurting me, so, clutching my book to my chest, I glared back at him.

"Is this the part where I'm supposed to be intimidated?"

This only seemed to make him angrier.

"No," he cried. "This is!"

And just like that, the short green kid morphed into a Sasquatch, towering over me. Fear took over my body. He wouldn't really attack me . . . Would he?

Taking a couple steps back, I dropped my book into the floor again and warmed up my powers to prepare to fight if necessary.

"Beast Boy!" someone cried from behind me, instantly saving me from having to do something I knew I would have regretted later. "Leave her alone!"

"What's gotten into you, man?" I heard Cyborg voice join Robin's, but I didn't dare take my eyes off of Beast Boy.

"You are behaving like a royal zarbnarf!" Starfire added.

The monster standing in front of me reluctantly changed back to his human form. Only then did I allow the glowing black energy around my hands to vanish.

Still angry, Beast Boy stomped around me to get into Robin's face.

"Look. This is who I am now. You guys don't like it? Tough!" he stated, adding in some gestures to help make his point.

"Fine!" Robin said, glaring right back at him. "If this is how you want to act, do it somewhere else! None of us are interested!"

I took a step forward when I saw Beast Boy move as if he was going to lunge at Robin, causing the Boy Wonder to flinch in response.

"That's what I thought," Beast Boy gloated after seeing his leader's reaction to the sike out.

Having said his piece, the shape-shifter strolled around Robin and continued on down the hallway, leaving us to look after him with increasing worry.

* * *

Sitting up in bed, I tried to read my book, but I couldn't focus on the words. I couldn't stop thinking about that look in Beast Boy's eyes. The soft, humorous gaze that I had fallen for was gone. Now . . . his stare was dark.

I didn't know how else to explain it. When he had gotten into my face, staring back at him, I felt like I was being pulled deeper and deeper into a dark abyss. It terrified me.

What had happened to Beast Boy? I wanted the old goofball back more than anything.

My thoughts were interrupted when a long howl was heard echoing through the hallway. A small gasp escaped my lips and I turned to look at my bedroom door, eyes widened in surprise. It sounded like a wild animal . . . a wolf maybe, but how would a wolf have gotten into Titan's Tower.

I felt my heart start to pound in my chest. Why was I scared? I'm a Titan. I couldn't be scared of some animal.

Hesitating for a second, I moved to place my feet on the ground and pushed myself off of my bed, heading over to the door. It swung opened at my approach. Pausing in the doorway, I cautiously glanced right and left down the empty hallway.

"Who's there?" I called out.

Not hearing a response, my first thought was to head back to bed. I started to turn back, but paused when another thought came to my mind. The howl had sounded like an animal . . .

. . . Beast Boy?

Our friendship may have been strained at the moment, but that didn't mean I shouldn't check on him. What if he was in trouble?

As I drew closer to his room, I heard what sounded like soft growling coming from the other side of the door.

"Beast Boy?" I called through the door. I placed my ear against the surface to try and determine what was going on. Through the metal, I heard what sounded like a scuffle happening inside.

Was there an enemy in the Tower? Why hadn't Beast Boy yelled for help?

The noises coming from Beast Boy's room continued and I felt a vibration through the floor as something heavy fell over, and then the sound of running footsteps.

Right as I was taking a step back from the door, a large section of the sheet metal bulged outward as someone on the other side punch a huge fist into the surface. I gasped in surprise, and took another step back as more hits were pounded against the door. It didn't take long for the attacker to smash the door off of its hinges, and I dove for cover just as it was sent flying into the hallway, barely missing my head.

I had landed on my hands and knees, facing down the empty hallway. A few strands of my hair had fallen down and were hanging in the outskirts of my vision.

I froze when I heard a low growl come from behind me, and rolled over on the floor so I was staring back the other way.

The first thing I noticed was the destroyed door that was leaning against the wall. The second was a shadow that stretched across the ground thanks to the light source that was pouring out from Beast Boy's room.

As I watched, a hulking, hairy creature stepped out of the doorway and slowly turned to face me. The brown creature didn't give me a chance to react to its presence. As soon as it spotted me, it bent down onto its hands and feet, and charged . . . heading straight for me.

A scream tore through my throat.

The last thing I saw before the creature was on me was the image of a similar green beast tearing through the destroyed bedroom door. He jumped onto the wall on the other side, and pushed off of it, lunging at the brown one that was nearly on top of me . . . and then everything went black.

* * *

The first thing I heard right before I opened my eyes was a steady beeping from a machine. I just barely made out the sound of an explosion somewhere in the distance.

What was happening?

Forcing my eyes open, I blinked a couple times before everything started to come back into focus. Taking a quick scan at my surroundings, it didn't take me long to realize that I was in the infirmary.

I squeezed my eyes shut trying to think. What was the last thing I remembered?

I remembered being in my room reading, and then . . . There was noise . . . I had gone to check on Beast Boy . . .

Everything suddenly came back to me in a flash. The monsters . . .

The brown one had attacked me, while the green one . . .

"Beast Boy!" I cried out, springing up in bed. The sudden movement triggered a pounding in my head. I let out a low groan as I raised a hand to rub my temple, hoping the pain would subside.

I felt a hand on my shoulder, and glanced up to see Starfire hovering over me.

"Rest. You are safe. He can no longer harm you," she calmly reassured.

I stared back at her in confusion. "Beast Boy didn't hurt me," I explained. "He saved me."

Hearing this, Starfire's eyes got as round as saucers. "From what?"

I turned away from her, and thought back to the attack.

"I don't know . . ." I admitted slowly. "There was another creature, similar to what Beast Boy had changed into, only brown in color."

"Brown . . ." Starfire breathed out, trying to puzzle through what I was telling her.

A thought slowly started to form in my head, and I moved to seat on the side of the bed.

"You know, Beast Boy hasn't been the same ever since he got covered in those chemicals . . . but he wasn't the only one that did."

"Adonis?" Starfire questioned. "You think the brown creature is him?"

I simply shrugged my shoulders. I hoped I was wrong. One of those beasts was bad enough, but two of them?

"We need to find the others."

* * *

The sun was just starting to peek over the horizon as I slowly made my way down the outcrop of rocks that covered the hill that led down to the bay.

The last time I had made my way down here was when I was spying on Beast Boy and Terra. Ever since, this part of the island had always made me feel weird, but Beast Boy was down there, and after recent events, I wanted to make sure he was okay.

The shape-shifter sensed my presence before I even made it all the way down.

"So . . ." he moaned, keeping his gaze on the water. "He was the one who hurt you, right? Not me?"

I brought one hand up to rest on my shoulder. A deep scratch mark lay just below my cloak. It still stung if I moved wrong.

"He broke into the Tower to attack you . . . and wound up attacking me too."

I heard him groan in disgust as I started to head closer to him.

"I can't believe I ate meat. I acted like a jerk. I'm sorry."

"You weren't yourself," I said.

"Cyborg says the chemicals at the lab messed with my DNA, unleashing something . . . primal," he continued, still refusing to look at me.

"And he gave you an antidote," I reminded him as I took a seat beside him. "You're better now."

"Yeah, but that thing – that beast – it came from inside me. And it's still there. I can feel it," he admitted. The idea seemed to scare him a little.

"Good," I said, hoping to cheer him up. I hated to seem him so depressed. "If it wasn't for that beast, I might not be here right now. Having that thing inside you doesn't make you an animal. Knowing when to let it out is what makes you a man."

I was relieved to see the small smile that appeared on his face before he turned back to look at the water, but I kept my eyes on him.

I watched as his dark green hair blew back slowly in the wind, and his pointy ears twitched slightly on his head.

He really was cute.

Glancing down, I noticed that our hands where only a couple inches away from touching each other. I started to reach out to grab his hand, but hesitated.

Was I really ready to take this step?

I was going to lose everything when my dad came: my friends, my home . . . my live as a hero. I could already picture the looks that everyone would give me when my true self was finally revealed.

If I made a move . . . If I started things up with Beast Boy, it would just hurt him even more when Trigon got here. I didn't want to cause him any extra pain then what I knew he was already going to experience.

. . . But my life had been so hard up to that point. Growing up with my father . . . Knowing what I was going to have to do . . . All I wanted was a chance to be happy, truly happy, before everything comes crashing down around me.

I deserved that . . . Didn't I?

Turning away from Beast Boy, I looked out over the bay.

"Hey, can I talk to you about something . . . kind of personal?" I heard myself ask.

"Of course," he answered. I could sense the smile on his face. "You can talk to me about anything, Rae. We're friends."

Friends? . . . Right.

I took a deep breath before continuing. "Do you remember when Starfire almost got married?"

"Yeah."

"You said something about how Robin should just . . . come clean about his feelings." I could feel my cheeks starting to get warm, and hoped it was too dark for Beast Boy to see me blushing.

"He should," Beast Boy said. "They would both be a lot happier. Don't you think?"

I shrugged my shoulders. "I guess."

"Why did you bring it up?" he asked, and I felt my heart started to pound in my chest.

"I . . . like you," I breathed out, keeping my eyes glued to water in front of me. If he was going to turn me down, I didn't want to see the look on his face. "I actually have for a while."

"I know."

My eyes grew round like saucers, and I finally turned to look at him.

"You knew?"

He smirked at me, and shrugged. "Well, I suspected."

Before I could react, Beast Boy reached out to place his hand over mine and leaned over to place a soft kiss on my cheek. These actions just caused me to blush harder, but if he noticed, he didn't say anything about it.

A small smile appeared on my face at his gesture. Holding my hand in his, he gently pulled me closer to his side, and we stared out at the bay, as we enjoyed each other's company.

I couldn't believe how good this felt; being close to someone like this. I didn't want this moment to end.

I really hoped this wasn't going to turn out to be a mistake.


	7. Betrayal

**Chapter 7: Betrayal**

The day that followed my confession to Beast Boy was a pinwheel of emotions.

When he had walked me back to my room that night, I knew our relationship was never going to be the same and I found myself falling asleep with a huge smile on my face. I don't think I had ever thought about the future with such hope before, but things didn't change as instantly as I had thought they would.

When I woke up the next morning, I headed out into the living room to see all of my friends were already present. I spied Beast Boy in the kitchen getting himself something to eat. With a small smile on my face, I made my way over to him. He glanced up at my approach, sending a smirk in my direction.

That was it. No reach for my hand. No kiss on the cheek. Not even a 'Good morning, Rae'. He simply sent me a shy smile as I walked past him to prepare my morning cup of tea. Maybe I was being a little paranoid, but I really had been hoping for something more after what had happened last night.

Trying to ignore the growing sense of rejection in the pit of my stomach, I took my cup and headed over to join Beast Boy at the island. He barely even glanced at me. Taking small sips from my cup, I watched him out of the corner of my eye as the shape-shifter enjoyed his meal.

Eager for him to finally acknowledge me, I waited until he had finished shoveling his breakfast into his mouth. He was working on chugging his juice when I reached out to lightly place my hand on his arm that was resting on the table.

The contact caused Beast Boy to gulp in surprise. His eyes grew wide, and his pointy ears perked up on his head. Bringing the glass away from his mouth, he quickly yanked his arm out of my grasp. Setting his drink down on the island, Beast Boy turned to give a frantic look around the room. Only after seeing that all of our friends were currently busy with their own activities did he seem to relax a little.

My eyes slowly grew wider as realization suddenly dawned on me.

It wasn't that Beast Boy was ignoring me. He didn't want our friends to know that we liked each other.

. . . Was he embarrassed to be dating me?

With his senses at ease, Beast Boy turned back with a smile and placed his hand over top of mine. Infuriated by his lack of respect for me, I wrenched my hand away from his and stormed out of the room. I vaguely made out the sound of the stereo system blowing up behind me due to my emotions, before the sliding doors closed behind me.

A couple seconds went by before I heard the doors sliding open again behind me.

"Raven!"

I ignored him, and continued making my way down the hallway.

"Raven, wait!"

I felt Beast Boy's hand brush against my arm, and spun around to face him.

"If you didn't want to be seen with me, all you had to do was say so," I stated, glaring at him.

"It's not like that," he said, waving his hands back and forth. "It's just . . ."

"Just what?!" I snapped. I was starting to get annoyed.

He glanced over his shoulder towards the living room door before continuing. "You know how our friends can be. Cyborg and Robin would have a field day with this if they found out. Star would probably be the most accepting to us being together, but I can even picture her letting out a jab or two at our expense." He shrugged his shoulders. "I just thought that it would be nice to keep this to ourselves for a little while."

"So, you just decide on this . . . without talking about it with me?"

"I didn't . . . We don't . . ."

My emotions were starting to steam inside my head. If I didn't manage to get myself under control, I didn't know what was going to happen.

I turned, and hurried down the hallway heading straight for my bedroom, leaving a stuttering Beast Boy behind me.

* * *

"Azarath Metrion Zinthos . . . Azarath Metrion Zinthos . . . Azarath Met-"

Knock . . . knock . . . knock . . .

With one eye still closed, a glared at the door in annoyance. "Who is it?"

"Rae . . . It's me," Beast Boy's voice drifted in through the closed entrance.

I instantly closed my eyes again, squeezing them shut. "Go away."

"Come on, Raven. Just talk to me . . . Please."

With a sigh, I placed my feet back on the ground and slowly headed over towards the door.

"Hi," Beast Boy said, waving at me cheerfully as I peeked my head out of my door. A broad smile was planted on his face.

I narrowed my eyes at him. "What do you want?"

Realizing that the smile wasn't going to work, he moved the hand that he had been waving at me towards the back of his neck and scratched it nervously.

"I just wanted to apologize," he started slowly. "You're right. I never should have assumed that you would want to keep us a secret."

"Really?" I asked, opening the door wider.

I watched as a shy smile crawled across the shape-shifter's face. "Yeah, and if you want to tell them what's going on, I'll . . ."

"No."

He looked up at me in surprise. "Huh?"

"I thought about what you said . . . and you're right. The others would make a lot of jokes if they found out about this." I shrugged. "It would be nice to have some time being a normal couple before having to deal with all of the teasing."

"So, you still want to be my girlfriend?" he asked, wiggling his eyebrows at me.

I couldn't help the soft chuckle that came from my lips. Why did he have to be so cute?

I nodded my head. "I would like that."

"Great, cause I kinda . . . made you something."

I stared back at him in shock. "You did?"

"Yeah," he exclaimed, and proudly presented a wrapped object to me that he had been hiding behind his back.

Still stunned, I reached out to take the present from him, and slowly pulled away the paper to reveal a raven-shaped box. The container had been hinged along the tops of the wings. There was even a mirror set on its inner surface.

"You made this?"

"With my own two hands!" he said, smiling broadly again.

I was astonished. No one had ever made anything for me before. My mind was already whirling with ideas on what I could use it for. I could use it to store some of ingredients for spells . . . or maybe use it to stash my gemstones and brooches.

The raven-shaped box was perfect. It was clear that he created this with me in mind, and the fact that he had to put his time and effort into making it for me just made it all the more special.

Hugging the box to my chest, I stuttered, "Beast Boy . . . it's . . . I don't know what to say."

"Well, you could say yes, 'cause I'm about to ask you out on a date," he explained, nervously running his hand through his hair.

A date with Beast Boy? A small smile grew on my face at the idea, and I could feel my cheeks getting warm.

"So . . . want to do something tonight?" he asked.

My smile grew a little bigger. "Sure," I nodded my head happily and took a step back into my room to set the box down on the bookcase that stood just to my right. "Where are we –" I started, but Beast Boy grabbed my hand and yanked me back into the hallway. Stumbling in surprise, I used his hold on me to help keep me on my feet. Still holding my hand, Beast Boy turned and started to run down the hallway with me.

"Come on!" he cried out in excitement. "I know just the place."

* * *

"There it is," Beast Boy exclaimed, as we drew closer to what appeared to be an old diner. The sign outside read "Ben's".

A bell on the door chimed when we opened it, and Beast Boy hurried over to take a seat at one of the rotating chairs at the counter that was to our left. Taking a quick scan of the place, I saw a couple pool tables available for the customers to my right, and I could hear a jukebox playing an old 80's songs from the other side of the room.

Taking a seat next to Beast Boy, I opened up the menu that the waiter laid in front of me and frowned at the options. Pictures on the brochure displayed meals such as ribs, hamburgers, and hot dogs. I couldn't find any options that didn't contain meat.

"Are you sure you want to eat here?" I asked, turning away from the menu to glance at the shape-shifter.

He simply sent me a smirk before turning back to the waitress. "Two apple pies, Pam. Thanks."

I narrow my eyes in confusion. We were several miles outside of Jump City, and yet Beast Boy was acting like he had been here before. I waited until he was looking at me before raising an eyebrow in question.

He glanced down at the counter looking slightly guilty. He gave a small shrug before explaining. "This was one of the places that I went with Terra . . . You know, before I found out that she was working for Slade." His cheerful smile returned to his face as he continued, quickly changing the subject. "The pies here are amazing. You have to try them."

As if on cue, two plates with slices of apple pie were placed in front of us. Beast Boy instantly reached for his fork, and brought a big bit of cooked apples to his mouth.

I stared at the pie in front of me. Suddenly I wasn't that hungry.

"What did you say to her?" I asked.

I felt Beast Boy eyes on me and heard him swallow a mouthful of pie. "What did I say to who?"

"To Terra," I explained, finally looking up at him. " _If you knew something bad about me, would you still be my friend?_ " I reminded him. "What did you say?"

The shape-sifter turned back to his dessert. Using his fork, he dug out one of the cooked slices of apple from the doughy exterior.

He shrugged before slowly admitting, "I told her I would . . . I promised her I would."

I let out a low sigh in relief before turning back to my plate. I was about to take my first bite when Beast Boy's next words reached my ears.

"That is, until I realized what she was hiding."

I glanced at him out of the corner of my eye.

"She's a traitor . . . a criminal," he explained, shrugging his shoulders again as he brought another bite of pie to his mouth. "We're heroes, Raven. We can't get mixed up with someone like that."


	8. Fear Itself

**Chapter 8: Fear Itself**

I couldn't help the small smile that was planted on my face as I turned to glance to my right. I watched Beast Boy as he scanned the movie titles that were on display, just a couple feet away from me, before turning back to study the options in front of me.

We had been secretly dating for a couple weeks now and I had never been happier. My life felt like it was finally falling into place.

Having to sneak around with our relationship could be challenging at times, but we had managed to come up with a few places to go to allow us to spend some time alone. It wasn't difficult to find opportunities to sneak into each other's rooms and we had met up on the roof on a couple of occasions, but the one place we felt the most safe was down on the rocks by the ocean. It always felt so peaceful there under the moonlight.

"Dude!" I heard Beast Boy cry out from out of sight.

Clutching my movie selections in one hand, I hurried to the end of the aisle to find the shape-shifter standing in front of a cardboard display of what looked to me like some alien monster. The image had several tentacles protruding out from under the hem of a long, tattered robe. The tall figure had its hood up so that no facial features were visible except for one glowing red eye.

I frowned as I slowly approached the green kid from behind. He, meanwhile, never took his eyes off the display.

"Wicked Scary is out on video?" he gushed, reaching for one of the DVDs that were set on the rack in front of the cardboard image.

Making it to his side, I grabbed one of the videos and turned the case over to scan the back. "Director's cut . . . Digitally re-mastered . . . Alternate ending . . ." I noted out loud as I read through the special features that the DVD contained.

"Awesome! Isn't it?" Beast Boy exclaimed, before turning to me with a huge grin on his face. I flinched slight as he moved to wave the case in front of my face. "We have to watch this tonight."

* * *

"Ladies and gentlemen, get ready for the scariest night of your lives!" Beast Boy announced as he stood with his back to the TV facing us, the video case clutched in one of his hands. "This movie is going to freak . . . you . . . out."

He had been babbling with excitement ever since we had gotten home with that DVD. Practically bouncing off the walls, the shape-shifter had turned into an annoyance for the rest of our teammates. It had gotten to the point where our friends couldn't wait for the sun to start to go down; not because they were as excited for the movie, but so he would finally shut up about it. I, on the other hand, was happy to see my boyfriend so happy. I was sure the others were suspicious as to why I hadn't sent a sarcastic remark in his direction all day, but they hadn't commented on it . . . yet.

As that thought crossed my mind, I peeked over the top of my book and rolled my eyes at him. "Whatever."

I felt slightly bad as I watched the huge smile that I had been painted on his face all day, fall into a scowl.

"Can't be any creepier than that documentary on hot dogs Starfire made us watch," Robin noted, pointing towards the Tamaranean that was seated to his left.

Ignoring the jab, the alien said, "It was fascinating! I had no idea that Earth people ate so many pigs – and insects."

"Yeah, yeah, bugs and hot dogs, big deal," Beast Boy said, shrugging off the remarks before holding up the video case for us again. "This movie is supposed to be cursed. When people watch it, strange things happen . . . evil things."

I let out a heavy sigh. Seeing him excited was great, but this was just getting annoying. "Just start the movie," I said. Setting my book down on the coffee table, I scooted over so that Beast Boy could sit in between Cyborg and I.

I saw an irritated expression cross over his face, but by the time he sat down with us and pushed play on the remote, the look had disappeared. As the movie began playing its intro music, I slowly reached out to grab Beast Boy's hand in the dark.

* * *

As a young woman backed up in the approaching shadow of the tentacle creature, she let out a scream of pure terror. Her screams slowly died out as the screen faded to black, the word 'End' appearing in big red letters.

I couldn't help but continue to stare wide-eyed at the screen. I could feel my heart pumping in my chest. I liked to think that I was not easily frightened, but that . . . that movie . . .

"Is it over?" I heard Beast Boy ask from behind me. I had been so focused on the monster that I hadn't even noticed that he had moved from his seat next to me.

"I dare not open my eyes to find out," Starfire whined from farther down the couch.

Peeling my eyes away from the TV, I turned to see that Starfire had grabbed the end of Robin's cape and was using it to hide behind. Both Robin and Cyborg were still staring dumbfounded at the screen.

"I've fought psychotic villains, robot commandos, and giant oozing monsters, but that is the scariest thing I have ever seen," Robin stated.

I quickly tried to compose myself and turned away from my friends, placing my hood over my head to hide my face. My efforts proved fruitless though when I jumped in surprise when they all broke out in high-spirited laughter and chatter.

Beast Boy jumped over the back of the furniture to join us back on the couch. "Did I tell you, or did I tell you?" he exclaimed in excitement.

"Thrilling, Beast Boy!" Starfire cried, clapping her hands. "It was . . . wonderfully horrible!"

I could feel my face getting hotter under my hood, and my heart was still beating wildly in my chest. I had grown up with a demon as a father. How could some stupid movie freak me out so much? As I lowered my head in embarrassment, I could hear my friends still talking in excitement behind me.

"Yeah, when she went into the basement – " Cyborg started.

" – and it was right behind her and she turned and – " Robin added.

"I was freaking out!" Cyborg shrieked before calming down again. "I wanted to turn it off."

"So . . . come on, Raven, admit it," Beast Boy said, placing his hand on my shoulder. "You were totally scared."

Reluctantly, I took my hood down and turned back around to face him. Seeing the look in his eyes, I couldn't help but feel stupid for being so scared. I didn't want him to think I was baby. Hoping to sound braver than I actually felt, I let out in a low growl, "I don't do fear."

* * *

I was sitting on my bed with my book open on my lap, but I was having trouble focusing on the story. My thoughts kept drifting back to the movie . . . and having Beast Boy chattering on about it just a few feet away wasn't helping me forget about it.

" . . . and when the creature was standing on the stairs in the shadows staring up at the girl . . . I thought she was a goner for sure!"

"Beast Boy, I'm trying to read," I said, hoping he would get the message.

"And did you see all the mouths on that creature! When his cloak came off . . . all those teeth." He shivered at the memory. "How could that not have scared you?"

"I told you," I groaned, not taking my eyes off my book, "I don't get scared."

He let out a small chuckle. "Come on, Rae. Everyone gets scared sometimes."

"Not me."

Just then, a loud clap of thunder sounded from right outside my window causing both of us to jump.

Trying to ignore the hammering in my chest, I turned to glance at the clock that was sitting on my nightstand.

"It's getting late," I noted. Slamming my book closed, I reached over to turn off the lamp.

"Okay," Beast Boy said, leaning over to leave a quick kiss on my cheek. "I'll see you in the morning," and turned to head for the door.

Placing my book on the nightstand, I moved to get under the covers when my eyes subconsciously scanned the regions of my bedroom. Shadows seemed to be lurking everywhere. Another clap of thunder sounded from outside.

"Beast Boy . . ."

He was only a couple steps away from the door when he turned back to look at me. "Yeah."

"It's just . . . If you wanted . . . You could stay in here tonight. You know . . . if you're scared," I stammered out. I could feel my cheeks getting warm as the words left my mouth.

In the dark, I was barely able to make out the look of shock that flashed across his face. This was the first time I had brought up the idea of a sleepover. The confusion slowly morphed into a smirk.

"I'll stay . . . if you admit you're scared," he taunted.

I rolled over so that my back was facing him. "Forget it."

Silence stretched on for a couple minutes. Any second I was expecting to hear the sound of the door sliding open, but it never came. Eventually, I heard the soft footsteps of someone approaching my bed.

Peeking over my shoulder, I watched as my boyfriend pulled back the blanket to allow himself to slide in next to me before I turned away again.

Watching the rain as it fall against the windowpane, I could sense Beast Boy lying close beside me just inches away. His breath was tickling the back of my neck.

"You know," he spoke up softly, interrupting the silence, "if you were scared, it wouldn't make me think any less of you."

Hearing this, I rolled over so I could look at him. "Really?"

"Of course, Rae," he said. Grabbing my hand, he brought it to his lips.

I sent him a small smile. "Thanks. Good night, Beast Boy."

"Good night, Raven."


	9. How Long is Forever?

**Chapter 9: How Long is Forever?**

"HAPPY BLORTHOG!" I hear Starfire screech in excitement as she entered the living room, but I was to engrossed in my recent book to look up . . .

At least I was trying to be.

With Cyborg arguing with my boyfriend over the game controller, and Robin, with his stereo turned up to 'ear-splittingly' loud, I was finding it immensely difficult to concentrate on the words in front me.

"Come on, Beast Boy!" Cyborg cried, reaching once again for the object in his friend's hand.

"Dude!" Beast Boy called back, using his elbow to try to hold him back. "I'm in the middle of a game!"

"Yeah, my game," Cyborg said, finally prying the device from Beast Boy's hand, "cause it's my turn!"

Narrowing my eyes, I sent a scowl towards them, hoping Beast Boy would cut it out, but he was too side tracked with his fight to even look over in my direction.

"Give me the controller!"

"No! Let go!"

"It's my turn!"

Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Starfire walking over to the couch. Hope rose inside me at the possibility of her getting them to finally shut up. I could feel a headache growing behind my eyes.

"Friends!" she announced eagerly, her arms filled with brightly colored bags and boxes. "We must frolic and leap in glorious celebration, for today is Blorthog – the Tamaranean festival of friendship!"

I didn't even bother looking up to see if this had changed anything. Due to the continuous sounds of disagreement, I knew the boys had completely ignored her declaration.

I heard a soft crash as something fell to the floor, and glanced up just long enough to see the gifts all lying on the floor in a heap at Starfire's feet. A couple necklaces with gray ornaments threaded onto them still rested along her wrists.

Trying to pretend like I was still reading, I watched as Starfire took a step forward, trying once again to talk to Cyborg, who was leaning back against the couch.

"Joyous greetings, friend!" she said, holding out one of the necklaces. "I, Starfire, give you this tinnabula as a symbol of – "

"You're gonna pay for that, you little grass stain!" Cyborg screamed, cutting the alien off mid-sentence.

Gaining possession of the controller again, Beast Boy hopped up onto the back of the couch.

"Many blessings, friend," Starfire said, trying once again to get someone to listen to her. "May your ears be filled with sugar candies and – "

"BEAST BOY!"

Starfire let out a sigh, before turning towards me, and I quickly looked back down at my book.

"Happiness and delight, friend. On this wondrous day I wish you sunshine and bunny – "

Sunshine and bunnies . . . ?

I raised an eyebrow at her. Was she serious?

My head was starting to throb by this point. If things didn't start calming down in here soon . . .

"Robin," I called across the room, trying desperately to keep my emotions under control. "Could the music be a little louder? I can still hear myself think."

At the mention of our team leader, Starfire turned and started to take a couple steps in his direction. Unfortunately, Robin chose that moment to snap in frustration.

"I only turned the music up to DROWN OUT ALL THE YELLING!"

With the game controller in his hand, Beast Boy leaped off the couch and attempted to make a run for it out of the room, by Cyborg hurried after him, blocking his exit.

"Knock it off!" Robin called after them. "I can't work with you two acting like idiots!"

"Great, Robin," I responded sarcastically, setting my book down. Clearly, I wasn't going to get any reading done today. "More yelling will definitely stop all the yelling."

As the screaming proceeded around us, I was barely able to make out the soft pleas from Starfire.

"Friends, please! You must not – If we could simply – Happy Blor – STTTTTOOOOOPPPPP!"

The uncharacteristic shout from our usually most peaceful member, caused us all to flinch in shock.

"Friends must never behave this way . . . and especially not on Blorthog!" Starfire sobbed. "Do you wish to invite the Rekmas?"

"Rek- what?" Beast Boy asked, scratching his head.

"Rekmas," she explained. "It's the point at which close friends begin to drift apart . . . and their friendship begins to die."

"Aw, come on, Starfire."

"We're getting on each other's nerves a bit. So what?"

"Yeah, this is just typical roommate stuff," Robin jumped in. "We're not going to drift apart, Star. I promise . . . We'll all be friends forever."

* * *

"The Teen Titans! This is a treat," exclaimed our latest target. He was sporting a tight gold and black armored suit. The only part of him that wasn't covered by the outfit was his face. "I read all about you in the historical archives . . . and you're all history!" As he was speaking, two blasters popped up from his shoulders.

"Titans! Go!" Robin gave the order, and we all leaped down off the balcony, just barely avoiding the blast.

As we split up, each going in our own directions, the man pivoted to one side and continued to fire, following Robin's path. Reaching into his utility belt, I watched as the Boy Wonder pulled out his fighting staff and extended it to its full length. Charging at the man in the suit, Robin skidded to a stop when one of the blasts broke his weapon in two, and he quickly turned to retreat.

Starfire chose this moment to swoop in, and threw a couple starbolts at our villain. Beast Boy, who had taken on the form of a lion, quickly joined her.

Leaping through the air, Beast Boy let out a growl, probably in an attempt to scare his prey, but the effect was lost when another blaster popped up from the man's suit, this one located on his arm. Aiming it at the green lion, I watched as my boyfriend's momentum was lost with an explosion of electricity.

With a growl, I used my powers to levitate two grandfather clocks that were located to my right. "Azarath Metrion Zinthos!" I screamed, sending the heavy antics soaring through the air, but with a simply swipe of his hand, he sent the two clocks flying over to one side, missing him completely. Staring back at him in disbelief, I wasn't able to move out of the way fast enough before he sent his counter attack with a blue flash that radiated from his helmet.

Pushing myself to my knees, I was able to make out a 'Boo-yah!' from somewhere in the distance, and figured Cyborg must be getting a piece of him now, which was quickly followed by a surprised 'Huh?' before I heard sparks going off.

"You cannot defeat Warp!" I heard someone cry out behind me in victory. "I am from the future!"

I looked up in time to see Robin charging at Warp again, this time with a handful of discs, but our villain had a big disc of his own that he sent flying at the same time the Boy Wonder attacked. The larger projectile smashed cleanly through Robin's, and him and Starfire had to dive for cover to avoid being hit.

Getting to my feet, I watched as Warp approached a glass case, and reached through it as if it wasn't even there to retrieve the clock that was inside. Taking a few steps back, he tapped a blue lens that was placed on his breastplate. I quickly turned, covering my eyes as a blinding white beam of light shot out of the lens to form a portal in the middle of the room.

"Ta-ta, Titans," Warp said with a bright grin. "I have enjoyed our time together, but I've got a very bright future ahead of me." And with that, he turned to make his exit, but before he could, Starfire let out a roar to my left and went flying straight at him.

"Starfire!" Robin cried out in a warning, and ran after her.

Plowing into Warp from behind, the alien's momentum sent both of them through the portal, which flickered out behind them, an instant before Robin hurled himself by in an attempt to follow them.

* * *

 _Things were never the same after Starfire's disappearance. It was like a dark cloud had drifted over the Titans Tower._

 _Robin was handling it the worst. Returning from the History Museum, Robin had headed straight for his bedroom and locked the door. He rarely came out since._

 _For the first couple of weeks, I had tried to talk to him. I tried to convince him that he needed to move on. He was still our leader. We needed him . . . but the loss of Starfire had ripped a gaping hole in his heart, and nothing I said was going to change the fact that she was gone._

 _Cyborg and Beast Boy had been doing their best to keep their spirits up, but I could tell that the loss had hit them hard too._

 _For the first couple of months, Cyborg had attempted to help Robin find some way to bring Starfire back, but Robin's temper had been on such a short fuse since her disappearance. Cyborg eventually gave up on trying to help him._

 _With Robin and Cyborg being sidetracked with their own things, this left me and Beast Boy with plenty of alone time; which in itself was kind of nice, but I wasn't able to give him my full attention. My mind was filled with worries about Starfire._

 _At first Beast Boy seemed to be in denial about the whole thing. I knew he was hurting just as much as the rest of us, but instead of talking, he kept his feeling over Starfire bottled up. He preferred to hide his grief behind his jokes. If I tried to force the subject, his emotions would snap and he'd storm out of the room._

* * *

 _Robin was the first one to leave._

 _Cyborg and Beast Boy were sitting on the couch, half-heartedly playing a video game, while I was in the kitchen making myself a cup of tea when Robin walked in. At the sound of the door swinging open, one of the boys had paused their game, and we all turned to see Robin stroll in . . . with a new uniform on. His colorful, tight fitting crime outfit had been replaced by a black unitard with an image of a blue bird painted on his chest._

 _A dark and heavy silence drifted over the room like a passing cloud. It had been weeks since he had last ventured out of his room and seeing him now, dressed all in black . . . I hardly recognized him._

 _All eyes were glued onto our leader as he proceeded to the center of the room and paused for a second before he began to speak._

 _"I just wanted to let you all know that I'm leaving. I – "_

 _"You can't leave!" Beast Boy interrupted, his eyes widening in shock._

 _"Yeah, man. I know this whole thing with Star has – "_

 _"This isn't just about Starfire," Robin stated firmly, narrowing his eyes at Cyborg. "I have been thinking about this a lot lately . . . and I want to try going solo again."_

 _"But Robin – "_

 _"No!" he screeched, and turned his stare in my direction. "I'm no longer going by that name. From now on, it's Nightwing." With that, he turned and marched out of the room._

 _We never saw him again._

* * *

 _Months went by. Cyborg started drifting himself farther and farther away from Beast Boy, leaving my boyfriend feeling desperately unwanted. Trying to make up for the loss of another friend, the shape-shifter had been clinging to me more and more often. I didn't blame him for wanting to hang around all the time. I was getting lonely too. It was during one of these meetings when it finally happened._

 _With everything that had been going on, I had rarely thought about my father. The idea of having to fret of the coming doom on top of everything else that was going on, was too much for me to handle. My 16th Birthday came and went without me even acknowledging it._

 _Beast Boy and I were in my bedroom when it happened. The curtains were drawn back, to allow the bright sunlight to filter into the room. There wasn't a cloud in the sky._

 _The shape-shifter was sitting on my bed with a comic book open in front him, while I scanned my rows and rows of bookshelves for something new to start reading._

 _A long shadow unexpectedly crossed over the room. It was way too early for it to be getting dark. Glancing out the window, I could see a dark circle in the sky. I knew instantly that it was the sun, but something was blocking it from view._

 _"What the – " Beast Boy started to ask._

 _I felt a tingling sensation go up my arms and legs, and looked down to see bright red symbols burning into my flesh. I instantly recognized it as Trigon's words._

 _"No . . ." I groaned, my eyes going wide._

 _"Raven . . . What – "_

 _I felt someone push me from behind, but before I could spin around to face the intruder, I felt someone grab my right arm, giving me one quick pull. Another invisible hand grabbed my left, and pulled me back the other way._

 _"Raven!"_

 _Then the force shoved me back and the next thing I knew, I was falling . . . and everything went black._

* * *

 _It's been nineteen years since that day. Nineteen years since I helped Trigon end the world. Nineteen years since Beast Boy left me . . ._

 _For years I had been alone, wandering around in the dark and cold. That's how it's been ever since Trigon came; dark and cold._

 _One day, I was wondering down a street that had been vacated long ago. Windows were shattered and gaping holes were in the roofs. Everything was so quiet._

 _Shivering, I wrapped my white cloak tighter around me._

 _I hated this. Everything about what my life had become. I missed my friends. I missed saving people . . . Now my life had come down to the day-to-day. Just doing what I had to do to survive and make it to the next._

 _My mind had shut off long ago. Everything I did was just going through the motions. If my stomach growled, I ate. If I was tired, I slept. If I was . . ._

 _Another shiver ran up my spine. I needed to get indoors._

 _Find shelter. Stay warm._

 _Looking up, I spotted an old building farther down the road. It seemed to be in better condition than the rest, which wasn't saying much._

 _On tired legs, I kept walking, keeping my eyes fixed on the old office building in front me. I paused before going inside, and glanced up at the balcony above me. With a tired sigh, I entered the rundown structure and made my way up the groaning staircase._

 _I've been there ever since. There was a dark room upstairs that I had turned into my bedroom. It was where I spent the majority of my time._

 _I was tired of walking around aimlessly. I was tired of trying to stay strong. I was tired of fighting to stay alive. What was point anymore? Why was I still fighting?_

 _My friends were always with me . . . at least in spirit. Memories of our times together were always in my head. It was the only thing that was keeping me going now._

 _Robin . . ._

 _Cyborg . . ._

 _Starfire . . ._

 _. . . And Beast Boy. I missed him the most._

 _Closing my eyes, I tried my best to push back the memories of the day he left. The day that I had fainted in my old room back at the Tower . . . The day I helped my father . . ._

 _I betrayed them._

* * *

 _As the days turned into weeks, and then months, I started to lose my hold on my sanity. The constant loneliness and feelings of guilt were just making it worse._

 _The comfortableness I once had with my memories was quickly becoming torturous. They weren't just in my head anymore. I saw them . . ._

 _Robin . . ._

 _Cyborg . . ._

 _Starfire . . ._

 _They all came to visit me. The worst was whenever Beast Boy showed up. While the others were usually friendly during their visits, Beast Boy was always fuming. A frown would always be on his face, his hands clutched into fists at his sides, and would always be glaring back at me with pure hatred in his dark green eyes. I didn't blame him though. I betrayed him . . . Just like Terra did._

 _I knew I was going crazy._

 _They weren't really here._

 _They deserted me._

 _No one was coming back._

 _No one._

* * *

 _One day, I was standing in the middle of my colorless room. I had my white hood up over my head. My eyes were closed. Taking deep breathes, I tried to keep my mind clear. It was the only way to keep the phantoms from entering._

 _The soft sound of the doorknob turning behind me caused my body to stiffen under my cloak._

 _No . . . Not today . . . No . . ._

 _"Raven?" I heard a voice say. Footsteps echoed softly as they entered the room. "Raven, it is Starfire, your friend."_

 _"No such thing . . ." I muttered under my breath, and closed my eyes tighter._

 _"Please, Raven, I – "_

 _"Just another figment. Don't even look."_

 _"You must listen!" the voice persisted. "I am here because – "_

 _"Never coming back! Go away!" I snapped, and floated closer to the wall in front of me. "It has to go away. Just like before. Just like all the others . . ."_

 _Soft footsteps told me that the figment was still there._

 _"Your mind . . ." the voice continued. "Without friends, you must have – "_

 _Sensing the presence getting nearer, I sent up a dark shield with my powers and heard a gasp from behind me. Seeming to give up, I heard the figment turn and head back for the door, closing it behind them._

 _Out of habit, I took a deep breath, and started to recite my usual chant._

 _"Azarath Metrion Zinthos . . . Azarath Metrion Zinthos . . ."_

 _I stayed like that for a while. Not moving. Trying not to think of anything. I didn't want it to return. No more ghosts . . . No more phantoms . . . No . . ._

 _Footsteps?_

 _My eyes snapped open. I had heard footsteps . . . The door knob had turned . . . Somebody had opened the door._

 _No . . . They were figments of my imagination. They didn't need to open doors. They would just appear._

 _The voice . . . So soft spoken . . ._

 _Starfire!_

 _No, it couldn't have been . . ._

 _A familiar beeping sound came from the brooch on my cloak. Glancing down, I saw that it was flashing._

 _"Calling all Titans . . ." I muttered to myself._

 _No . . . It couldn't be._

* * *

"Then Nightwing handed me the clock and I entered the vortex," Starfire said, finishing her adventurous story of her trip to the future.

I stared back at her in disbelief. The way she described it, the future sounded . . . quiet. Does that mean it happens? I help Trigon? Is there really no way to stop it?

"Whoa," I said, simply to fill the silence that had settled in the room.

"Bald?!" Beast Boy cried in front of me. "You're telling me I'm going to be bald?!"

I placed my hand on his shoulder in a silent form of support.

"Guess you were right about that Rekmas stuff," Cyborg added.

"I don't want us to drift apart," Robin said, a sad look on his face. "Does it have to happen? Isn't there anything we can do?"

Starfire shrugged her shoulders. "Our friendship has already changed Warp's past. I believe it can also change our future."

Our friendship?

I looked around at all my friends. We had done amazing things already. Stopped countless bad guys. Was it possible? Could our friendship change the future? Could it change my destiny?

Wanting to push the thoughts out of my mind for now, I used my powers to levitate all the loose beads that were still lying on the ground, fixing the necklaces.

"So, is it too late to do this festival-of-friendship thing?" I asked.

The look on Starfire's face changed drastically at that.

"Oh, it's never too late!"


	10. Things Change

**Chapter 10: Things Change**

"Mmm-mmm!" Cyborg moaned, chewing happily on a baby back rib. "Man, I love picnic food."

It was the middle of summer. With the sun shining brightly in the sky, the gang had decided that it would have been a shame to stay home all day. Instead of sticking to Robin's usually strict training schedule, we convinced him to let us take the day off and we headed to the park.

I was sitting under the shade of tree a few feet away from the picnic table, trying to get in a few minutes of meditation, but I was still able to catch every word of their conversation.

"Agreed," Starfire said, acknowledging Cyborg's statement before adding, "and this tangy yellow beverage is truly delightful."

Tangy beverage . . . ?

I opened one eye to glance in her direction, and saw her holding up a yellow condiment bottle. My friends were all sending her weird looks as well.

"Uh, Starfire . . . that's mustard," Robin explained slowly.

"Is there more?" she asked, clearly not seeing anything wrong with this image.

A couple of leaves fell around me and I looked up to see Beast Boy hanging upside down from a branch holding something in his hands.

"Sweet! My tofu dogs are cooked to perfection," he noted to himself before turning to me. "Yo, Raven, try one. They're loaded with soy beanie goodness," he said, reaching one out towards me.

I frowned at the offering. "I respect that you don't eat meat. Please respect that I don't eat fake meat."

A frown flashed across his face, but the smile quickly reappeared.

"Who wants to play some football?" I heard Cyborg call from the table.

Robin and Starfire happily agreed.

"Be right there Cy," Beast Boy called, before jumping out of the tree to land on his feet next to me and moved to sit down. "You have any plans tonight?" he whispered, bumping his elbow against my arm.

I shook my head, a small smile playing on my lips. "No, why?"

"Really, Rae? You didn't think I would forget, did you?" he asked, wiggling his eyebrows at me.

Today was our first month anniversary. As the day had grown closer, Beast Boy hadn't said a word about it. I really had started to think that he had forgotten.

"You have something planned for tonight then?" I asked, starting to get my hopes up.

He sent me a smirk. "Just be ready to go by seven tonight," he said before standing up and heading over to join the rest of our friends in their game.

* * *

Setting my hairbrush aside, I stared at my reflection in the mirror and a small smile crept onto my face. I was still dressed in my usual long-sleeved leotard, with my indigo colored ruffled boots on my feet.

This past month had been one of the happiest of my life. Beast Boy was so different than me in many ways. While I was calm, quiet, and reserved, Beast Boy was hyper, energetic, and constantly making jokes. He had this way of making me relax. With him, I tended to let my guard down slightly and would allow myself to have more fun than I usually would. Just thinking about him brought a smile to my face.

Glancing at the clock, I watched as the numbers changed to 7:00 pm.

Letting my eyes drift towards my window, I noticed that it was already starting to get dark outside and a shiver ran up my spine in anticipation. Wanting to keep our destination a surprise, Beast Boy had refused to tell me where he was going to be taking me tonight.

Reaching for the dark blue cloak that I had thrown across my bed, I clipped it into place around my shoulders. With one last look in my full-length mirror, I turned and headed out into the hallway to meet up with my boyfriend.

* * *

The Carnival!

I couldn't help the excitement that ran through my body. This was great!

Usually I would have found the bright flashing lights, and groups of screaming children obnoxious and irritating, but that was before Beast Boy. Right now, all my attention was focused on being with him and having fun.

As he ran off in the direction of one of the rides, I quickly took off after him.

* * *

Beast Boy and I were currently stopped at the top of the Ferris wheel. It had been an amazing night.

Our first stop had been at the Bumper Cars. Closing my eyes, I relived the moment of Beast Boy and I zipping past each other in the cars. Spinning my car around, I watched as the shape-shifter paused his vehicle in the middle of the arena. Using the moment to my advantage, I sped up and rammed into him from behind causing his body to jerk forward from the impact. Quickly turning around in his seat, he looked back to find me laughing at him.

After the ride, Beast Boy had pulled me into one of the photo booths that were located around the Amusement Park where we proceed to make funny faces at the camera. At one point, Beast Boy had morphed into a green puppy to pose for a picture in my arms.

But my favorite thing in the park was probably the Chamber of Horrors. There was a graveyard scenario set up as part of the ride, with red eyes flashing in the darkness. I was quite at ease through the whole thing, studying the spooky decorations and laughing as things jumped out at us. Beast Boy, on the other hand, was much less so. As groups of ghosts, a few spiders, and even a skull popped out at us, Beast Boy would jump in fright in his seat. I chuckled softly at the memory.

My eyes suddenly snapped open and I gripped onto the bar that was in front of me in fright as the car started to shake back and forth under me.

"Beast Boy!" I shouted in alarm. "Stop it!"

I heard him laugh joyfully next to me. When our car was still again, Beast Boy turned to look at me. His usual happy grin was on his face and a sparkle was in his eyes.

"What were you thinking about?" he asked.

"Nothing," I said blushing slightly, and I relaxed my death grip on the bar.

He tilted his head to one side, studying me. "Yes, you were. You were laughing about something."

I shrugged and glanced at him out of the corner of my eye. "Just having a good time tonight."

He reached for one of my hands that were now resting in my lap. "Me too," he said before leaning in to leave a quick kiss on my cheek.

I sent him a small smile, my skin tingling from where his lips had touched my skin. I stared back at his pointy ears and green skin.

"How did you get your powers?" I asked, the words coming out of my mouth before I could register what I was saying.

Surprise flashed across his face, which quickly turned to sadness as he turned away from me. I instantly felt like I had hit a nerve.

"You don't have to – "

Beast Boy shook his head, interrupting me. "My parents were geneticists," he began. "They would travel through jungles all over the world to study the wildlife. They took me with them on most of their trips."

"You've traveled a lot?"

He nodded. "Brazil, Africa, India . . . I've been to a lot of places." He paused before continuing. "There was one animal that my parents became particularly interested in: a rare species of green monkeys."

I turned away from him, part of me not wanting to hear what happened next.

"I was bitten by one of the monkeys and got sick. To save me, my parents attempted to cure me with a new serum that hadn't been properly tested yet." I felt Beast Boy shrug his shoulders, and I looked up at him. "It worked. I got better, but . . ." He brought his hand up towards his face, studying the green surface. "There were a couple . . . side effects."

"After my parents passed away, I had trouble trusting people. I ended up discovering the Doom Patrol and joined up them for awhile," Beast Boy continued, "but you know how Mento is."

I nodded my head in understanding. We had met the members of the Doom Patrol a couple months ago when they had sent out a call for help. Their leader had displayed a less-than-encouraging attitude towards our team.

"What about you?"

I felt my heart jump in my chest. "Huh?"

"You don't talk much about your past either," Beast Boy said, the smile returning to his face. "What's your story?"

 _My story?_

An image of my father flashed behind my eyelids. Turning away from Beast Boy, I watched as the tiny people below us walked around enjoying the theme park.

He would learn about it soon. My past . . . My destiny . . . The day was coming up fast.

Maybe it would be a good idea to warn him.

Taking a deep breath, I let the air out slowly. "Beast Boy . . . There is something I – "

"Terra . . ."

The name was spoken so softly I almost missed it.

"What?" I asked, raising my eyebrows at him, but he wasn't looking at me.

With one hand clutching the gray bar in front of us and the other gripping the side of our car, Beast Boy stood up as best he could in the confined space and was stretching his neck out. Even though he was facing away from me, I knew his eyes were scanning the ground for said girl.

The car suddenly rocked under us as the ride started up again, and I reached out to grab Beast Boy.

"Sit down!" I cried in alarm, my heart pounding in my chest. "What do you think you're doing?"

Beast Boy plopped back down on the seat. "Nothing, I . . . I thought I saw someone."

The disappointment on his face floored me.

Did Beast Boy really miss Terra that much? Did he still have feelings for her?

As the pounding of my heart slowed down, a dull ache took its place.

 _What about me?_


	11. The Prophecy

**Chapter 11: The Prophecy**

 ** _Terra's Point of View_**

I stared up at a stained-glass window that was high above me on one wall. Why were we meeting in a cathedral? It seemed like a strange place to meet in order to discuss our plans to destroy the Teen Titans.

All my life I had done nothing but cause trouble and disaster to the people around me. I had to live as a nomad for years, terrified to stay in one place for too long in case I lost control, like I had done so many times before. People had died because of me, because of my lack of control. So when I was offered the chance to learn how to control my powers, I leapt at the opportunity.

Slade had helped me. He was the one person who had been able to get my powers under control. I owed him so much, and now was my chance to pay him back.

I felt someone stepping up behind me. Knowing instantly that it was my master, I stood up straighter waiting to hear what he had to say. Slowly, the man walked around me, coming into my line of sight.

"You belong to me now. Don't you?" he asked, avoiding eye contact with me.

"I do."

"Will you obey my every command?"

"I will."

"And will you destroy the Teen Titans?"

"I thought you'd never ask," I replied sending him a smirk.

Finally, Slade turned towards me. His eyes drifted over me, studying me in my new uniform. I traded in my old outfit a couple months ago in favor of new uniform that he had giving me. My new getup featured a steel breastplate and a black codpiece, with shoulder and elbow pads. A layer of cloth was wrapped under the armor to cover my entire body. To finish the look, I had placed a metal hair clip above my left ear to help keep my hair from falling into my eyes.

"Good," he said at last, "because I have a special assignment for you."

Hearing this, a small smile grew on my face. "Anything. I want to help."

Turning his back to me, Slade faced the wall before us. "I'd like you to meet someone."

I frowned, not sure what he meant. There was no one else here.

Staring at the dark shadows that stretched along the wall, I squinted my eyes trying to understand what I was supposed to be seeing.

"I don't – "

I jumped in shock and my eyes went wide as I stared in disbelieve. Floating in the air, about a feet away from the wall were four huge red eyes that seemed to have blinked into existence.

"Terra," a deep voice replied. It seemed to be coming from the direction of the glowing red stare. "I've been expecting you."

* * *

 ** _Raven's Point of View_**

My birthday . . .

The day had finally come. I was 16 years old. This was the year that . . .

I squeezed my eyes shut, wishing the thought away. What was I going to do?

Lifting my head slightly from my pillow, I peaked at the clock that was sitting on my nightstand.

6:00 PM

"Just six more hours," I reminded myself. "Six more hours, and this day will be over."

I had spent the whole day in my room. I couldn't bare the thought of facing my friends today.

Sitting up, I reached for the clock and placed it on the bed in front of me. Blocking everything else out, I focused my attention on the timepiece. The only sound I could hear was the soft ticking of the second hand as it slowly made its way around. Growing impatient, I began to anxiously bounce my leg up and down on my bed.

"Can't this thing go any faster?" I groaned. I let out a sigh. "Relax," I told myself, "Only a few hours to go. It might not even happen . . ."

What was I saying? Of course it was going to happen. This was not something my father would easily forget about.

Needing a distraction, I decided to do what I have always done when my mind would get cloudy with stressful thoughts. I turned to meditation.

"Azarath Metrion Zinthos . . ." I chanted softly. "Azarath Metrion Zinthos . . . Aza – "

BEEP! BEEP! BEEP!

Opening one eye, I saw a bright light in my room flashing red. The emergency alarm!

My heart froze in fear.

Was this it? Was this when it happens?

My head spun around to glance at the clock that was still resting on my bed.

9:00 PM

* * *

Turning left passed a building, my friends and I scanned our surroundings. The boardwalk appeared to be deserted.

"Are you sure this is the place?" Cyborg asked, turning towards our leader.

Robin grabbed his communicator from his belt and glanced at it before nodding his head.

"The coordinates lead to right here." He stuffed the device away. "Maybe we should split up. Cover more ground."

"No need for that," a voice came from behind us and we all spun around to find . . . Terra.

"It's been a long time, hasn't it, Titans?" she continued, stepping off the rock she had been standing on and folded her arms against her chest. "Far too long for my tastes, anyway."

"Terra?" Robin questioned. He was staring back at the blonde girl just as shocked as the rest of us. Getting himself under control, he growled, "Where's Slade?"

The young woman shook her head, a mischievous grin on her face. "Not here."

"You shouldn't be here, Terra," Beast Boy said, and I turned to see a deep frown on his face.

She let out a little chuckle at this. "And why should I listen to you?" She tilted her head to one side, studying the shape-shifter. "I know you don't like it Beast Boy, but I'm working with Slade now. I've been assigned a mission," she added, turning to send her evil grin in my direction.

My eyes widened in shock. Did she know?

"Look at yourself, Terra!" Robin spoke up, oblivious to what was going on between Terra and me. "Is this really what you want to be? You don't belong with Slade."

This drew Terra's stare away from me, and I let at a sigh in relief.

Clenching her fists at her sides, Terra lashed out at him. "You don't know anything about me!"

Beast Boy suddenly transformed into a lion and leaped at Terra. Hearing the advance, Terra uprooted a huge boulder and hauled it at the green animal. The rest of us scattered in different directions.

Turning back to face Terra, I saw a huge boulder heading straight at me. With less than a second to spare, I conjured up my magic and used it to disappear through the wall that was at my back, quickly reappearing in a dark alley a few feet away.

Keeping my eyes on Terra, I watched as she turned to lock onto her next target: Beast Boy. Transforming into a hawk, he barely made it out of the way of the flying rock in time.

Cyborg and Starfire came rushing in from opposite sides unleashing their own attacks onto Terra, but she simply used her powers to create a shield of stone to protect herself. As she stands there, imperturbable as ever with her arms crossed in front of her, Robin throws a handful of discs across the boardwalk, and Beast Boy jumps down from above as a gorilla to add in his own attack.

The force of the attacks caused Terra to slide backwards away from the Titans. Quickly getting back to her feet, she hurled a large rock up at Starfire who was heading towards her, sending the alien flying down the boardwalk. Cyborg moved up behind Terra, aiming at her with his sonic gun. Ducking underneath his attacks, the blonde raised one hand and sent a boulder rising up, and hit Cyborg hard in the stomach.

Behind Terra, Robin swung in and started slinging more discs. They detonated everywhere but fell short of the fleeing villain who raced farther down the boardwalk. The Boy Wonder charged through the smoke with his staff at the ready, but lost sight of his victim on the other side.

Opening up a wormhole farther down the boardwalk, I stepped out appearing right in front of Terra. I expected her to look shocked at my sudden appearance in front of her, or even to use her powers to throw another boulder at me, but instead she came to a sudden stop a few feet in front of me.

"Well, hello birthday girl," she taunted, and my eyes went wide.

"You know, Raven, I never liked you," Terra continued taking a couple steps closer to me.

"I never even wanted to know you," I shot back. "You may have fooled the others, but I always knew you were a liar."

"Oh really?" she shot back. "Is that why you let me live in your house and steal all your secrets and – "

"Shut up!" I cried, taking a few steps back.

"You're not getting mad, are you, Rae?" she taunted. "Oh, better be careful. Beast Boy told me all about your temper tantrums."

I glared back at her.

"Come on, Raven. What stings the most? That I tricked you? Or maybe it was the fact that everyone liked me better than you?"

"Stop it!"

"Or is it that deep down inside, you really believed I was your friend?"

With my blood starting to boil inside me, I gathered my powers into one hand and projected them out towards Terra in the form of a huge black claw, which seized her around her waist, lifting her into the air.

"I have a message for you, birthday girl," Terra said, barely fazed by the black claw that had its grip around her torso. "It has begun."

A glowing S-mark suddenly appeared on Terra's forehead. I gasp in recognition, and the black claw vanished, dropping the young girl.

"I have to say, Raven," Terra added, getting back to her feet, "when I found out the truth, I was very impressed. All this time, I had no idea of the power lurking inside you. It's always the quiet ones, isn't it?"

This couldn't be happening. I couldn't let it happen.

"Today is the day it begins," Terra's voice ringed in my head. "You've known it all your life. It is going to happen. And no matter what you wish . . . no matter where you go, no matter how you squirm . . . there is nothing you can do to stop it."

Turning, I attempted to flee away from Terra. If I could get away . . . If I could just get back to the Tower . . . to where it was safe . . .

"Time won't wait forever," I heard Terra call as I ran. I turned down a dark alley hoping to lose her. "You can't run away from who you are."

"I can try!" I mouthed to myself, breathing heavily.

Feeling a hand land on my shoulder, I let out a gasp in surprise and whirled around to come face-to-face with Terra. Taking hold of my wrist, she leaned over until our faces were just inches apart.

"You're making this much more difficult than it needs to be," she snapped. "The message must be delivered."

"No!" I cried out in dismay as I felt the mark on Terra's forehead burn itself onto my skin. A prickly sensation ran up my arms and legs. Glancing down, I watched as more dark red symbols appeared over my body.

Terra let go of my wrist and I collapsed to the ground. Wrapping my cloak around me, I tried to hide the symbols from my eyes.

"Skies will burn," I heard the girl say from above me. Placing my hands over my ears, I tried to block out everything she was saying. "Flesh will become stone. The sun will set on your world never to rise again."

"No!" I cried, shaking my head. "No! I won't do it!"

I felt Terra's hand on my shoulder again, but I shook her off.

"Yes," she replied sternly. "It's your destiny . . . and there is nothing you can do about it."

"STOP!" I screamed desperately.

That was it. That was what my whole life had been leading up to.

I loved the life that I had made for myself.

My friends.

My home.

Beast Boy . . .

I didn't want anything to change. I just wanted it all to stop.

Squeezing my eyes tightly shut, I felt a black wave radiate out from my body and shivered as I allowed it to wash over the entire landscape . . . and then it was over.

Silence.

Complete silence.

Blinking open my eyes, I slowly lowered my hands from my face and stared in disbelieve up at Terra who was locked in place. Glancing up, I saw a few birds in the sky that had frozen in the air. Everything was still.

Pushing myself to my feet, I hesitantly reached out my hand to touch Terra.

She didn't move.

"How did I – "

My hand was starting to shake. Backing up, I made my way out of the dark alley and glanced up and down the boardwalk.

"What did I do?"

I had to get away.

I needed time.

I needed to talk to someone.

There had to be someone who would understand, who would be able to help me.

For the first time in months an image of Arella appeared in my mind.

"Mother . . ." I whimpered.

Engulfing myself in my dark magic, I transformed into a raven and flew off into the distance.

* * *

A sigh of relief escaped my lips when I exited the wormhole and my eyes rested on a familiar floating landscape in the distance.

Azarath.

It was known as a realm of beauty, peace, and tranquility, but to me it was just home.

Steering towards my destination, I flew closer towards the buildings expecting to see people walking around, going about their day, but there was no one. Not a soul.

Landing in one of the streets, I scanned the towering structures around me.

"Hello?" I called out as I made my way down the street, and frowned at the lack of a reply.

First the time-freeze on Earth, and now this?

A shiver ran up my spine. The silence was really starting to get to me.

Hoping to find somebody to help explain to me what was going on, I broke into a run.

Letting out a gasp in surprise, I skidded to a stop when a white dove suddenly flew past me. I blinked as the creature flew on down the street and turned left down a side road.

This was the first living, moving thing I had seen since I had caused . . . whatever I had done back on Earth. I wasn't completely sure why, but something told me that I should follow the white bird. Not wanting to lose it, I took off running again, this time with a goal.

After a few turns through the deserted streets, I stopped to watch as the animal flew up towards a high balcony. Seeing a figure standing out on the terrace, I instantly took flight. Drawing closer, I recognized the woman instantly.

"Arella!" I called out before the woman could return to her room. "I've come back. Mother, please help me."

The woman in the white cloak turned back around to face me. I was just able to make out her face from under her hood. "You are always welcome here, my child."

"The prophecy," I explained, stepping closer to her, "it's happening. Please, you have to tell me how to stop it."

The woman slowly shook her head. "There is nothing that can be done. The promise of your birth was absolute."

I was starting to get angry. "I don't believe you. There has to be a way." Lowering my voice, I continued, "I don't want to be this. I don't want to help him."

"You have always had the love of your people, Raven, even knowing what you would become . . . and what that would bring, but I'm afraid it is too late for Earth."

* * *

All of my friends were gathered in the living room when I returned to the Tower.

"Raven!" Beast Boy cried out, dashing over to me, and wrapped me in a tight hug.

"Where have you been?" Starfire asked as she flew over.

"Sorry for worrying you," I said, wiggling out of Beast Boy's hold. "I needed to talk to someone."

"Who?" Robin asked, coming over to join us.

"What happened today?" Cyborg added.

"I went home. I thought my mother would be able to give me some advice, but . . ." I let the sentence trail off, and headed over to take a seat on the couch.

I sensed my friends gathering around me, but I kept my eyes glued to my hands. They were shaking.

I couldn't hide it anymore. I had to warn them about what was coming.

Taking a deep breath, I let it out in a sigh. "Remember when we first met . . . and I told you that if you guys knew what I really was . . . you wouldn't want me around?"

There was a long silence before Robin spoke up. "What's going on, Raven?"

I could feel Beast Boy's eyes on me, burning into me. My body felt numb, but I had to continue.

"Terra was sent to deliver a message to me. It's almost time."

"Time for what?" Beast Boy asked.

I squeezed my eyes shut, praying they weren't going to be furious at me for keeping something so huge from them. "The end of the world."

"The end of the world? Why would Slade and Terra need to contact you for something like that?" Cyborg spoke up.

"I shouldn't have dragged you into this," I said, shaking my head. "Any of you, but now you're in. And you need to know. I need to tell you." I paused, before finally saying the words that I had been dreading them finding out since the day I came into their lives. "When I was born, they looked into my future. On this day, the anniversary of my birth, something is supposed to happen. Something very bad . . ."

"Bad?" I heard Beast Boy say. Something in the sound of his voice made me flinch. "What are you talking about, Rae?"

"I'm sixteen today," I admitted. "Sometime this year, I'm supposed to act as a portal to allow Trigon to come to Earth."

I sensed all my friends' recoil at the name.

"Are you serious?" Cyborg asked. "That's who we're up against? Oh, man!"

"His cruelty is legendary, even on my world," Starfire added.

"But, Raven . . . why you?" Robin asked.

"Because . . . Trigon . . . is my father."

"Your father?!" Beast Boy roared from beside me. I felt the cushion under me move slightly as he jumped to his feet and turned to look down on me. "You've known about this the whole time and you . . . didn't . . . say . . . anything?"

"Beast Boy . . ." Robin tried to send him a warning, but the shape-shifter didn't want to hear it.

Pointing an accusing finger at me, Beast Boy continued. "How could you do this? We befriended you, we treated you like part of the group, and now this?! I trusted you. I thought that we had something special, but I guess I was wrong. You're just like Terra!"

I could feel Robin, Cyborg, and Starfire staring at us in confusion. Beast Boy was getting so angry that he was about to let it slip about our secret relationship. Of course, at this point that was the least of my worries.

"Bad things are going to happen soon. Really bad things. And it's going to be my fault. I thought I could handle this alone. I tried . . . but . . . I was wrong." I turned my pleading eyes up to look into Beast Boy's, begging him to understand. "I know that what Terra did to you was bad, and I'm sorry about that, but she had a choice. This isn't the same thing . . ."

He shook his head, a deep frown planted on his face. "You always have a choice."

"Beast Boy . . ." I tried to protest, but it was too late.

"You're no different than Terra! She's a traitor, working with Slade. And this . . . You're working with Trigon," he insisted. Robin tried to jump in, and Beast Boy turned his accusing stare onto him. "We can't get mixed up in this! We're heroes, and we've been harboring a criminal!"

Robin had had enough. "Raven is not a traitor. No crime has been committed yet. She has come here asking for our help, and, as heroes, we are going to do what we can to try and prevent this event from taking place."

There was an awkward moment of silence as Beast Boy stared back at our leader.

"Fine, but this doesn't change my feels on the matter," the shape-shifter spat, irritated, before turning back to glare at me, "We're done."

My eyes grew round, and I felt my heart drop in my chest. I watched as he started to turn and make his way around the couch, heading for the door.

Leaping up, I made to follow him. "Beast Boy! Please, I – "

"Leave me alone," he growled over his shoulder, and the door slid closed behind him.


	12. Hide and Seek

**Chapter 12: Hide and Seek**

The days that followed my break up with Beast Boy were worse then I had ever imagined possible. As I attempted to get up each and every morning to complete my normal day-to-day routines, a continuous numb feeling would sit in the pit of my stomach.

The nights were the worst. The gnawing ache that I would do my best to hold back during the day would always come back at full force when I would lay down to go to sleep. Tossing and turning, I would wrap my arms around my abdomen in an attempt to stall the nausea I was feeling. Tears would pour down my cheeks, and leave stains on my pillowcase and sheets.

I never talked to my friends about what had happened. They had overheard enough to realize that there had been something more than friendship going on between me and the changeling, but in light of everything else that was happening, I was glad when they decided not to question me about it.

I rarely saw Beast Boy. Lately, he had preferred stowing away in his private quarters . . . Not that I blamed him. The few times I did see him either stepping into the kitchen to get something to eat, or running into him in the hallways, were painful to deal with. I wanted nothing more than to try and make things right with him again, even if it wouldn't be like it was before . . . but he wouldn't even talk to me.

It felt like my heart was being ripped out of my chest and I couldn't make the pain go away.

* * *

With my hands on my hips, I waited impatiently in front of the train station where Robin had instructed me to go.

Taking a quick scan of the area, I took in my immediate surroundings. Behind me, I could see a mountain range that was set a couple miles in the distance, while in front of me laid a lush meadow.

I began to tap my foot in annoyance, and glanced both ways down the dirt packed road.

Where was the bus?

It felt like I had been waiting for hours.

Lately, Robin had been encouraging us to take on missions outside of Jump City. Everyone else seemed to find this rather strange. Why take on crimes outside of the city when we already had plenty of missions to deal with in town? But, considering how things had been playing out with the team lately, it actually made a lot of sense to me.

With the knowledge of my destiny being out in the open . . . and the awkwardness going on between Beast Boy and me, we had all been feeling rather tense being around each other lately. I had feeling Robin was hoping that having us take on a few missions separately would help cool things down a bit.

That didn't mean I had to enjoy standing in the middle of nowhere with the beating sun blaring down on me.

Where was this bus?!

I could feel my blood starting to boil in frustration. With a sigh, I closed my eyes and began to mumble my typical chant under my breath.

Hearing the sound of an engine in the distance, I opened my eyes to see a cloud of dust heading in my direction.

"Finally . . ." I moaned in relief.

As the vehicle neared, it came to a stop in front of the train station and the door swung open. At first, no one seemed to be getting off, and then –

"WAAAAH!"

I raised an eyebrow in wonder. What . . . was that?

Seconds later, a girl no older than six or seven, came waddling towards the open door, carrying a screaming child in her arms. Hopping off the bus, another young child, perhaps four or five years old, followed clutching a light blue blanket in one hand.

"You have got to be kidding . . ." I moaned, and reached for the communicator under my cloak. "Raven calling Robin. Over," I said into the device.

I was suddenly jerked back when I felt a tug on my cloak, and glanced down to find a child with orange hair staring back at me.

"Are you Raven?" the child asked.

"Robin's communicator." I heard an all too familiar voice coming from the device in my hand. "May I help you?"

Ignoring the child, I turned back to the frown at the face on the screen.

"Oh . . . It's you," Beast Boy snapped, immediately mimicking my expression.

"Beast Boy, put Robin on."

I was not in the mood to deal with him right now.

"Wish I could." He scowled. "But he's fighting crime at the moment. What's the problem?"

Behind Beast Boy, I caught an image of Robin attempting to take down what appeared to be a robot, which just proved the changelings explanation.

"Tell him I don't do babysitting," I replied back, starting to get annoyed.

Beast Boy placed a hand over the screen as he turned away from me to relay the message to our leader somewhere behind him. There was short pause before he turned back, removing his hand.

"He says you have to."

"Can't someone else do it?" I plead with him. "Starfire likes people . . . or Cyborg?"

"Everyone else is on other missions. You just gonna have to – " he said, before his attention was yanked away by a laser shot that blew out a spot just behind him, and the connection broke into a snarl of static.

I could feel my temple beginning to throb in irritation. Now, what was I going to do . . ?

"Hey, lady," I heard one of the kids call from behind me, and turned to see the blonde girl staring up at me with big round eyes. "Are you going to help us?"

"Which one are you?" I asked with a sigh.

"Melvin," she announced. "That's Timmy, and Teether," she explained pointing to the orange-headed kid, and then the baby.

I nodded once. "You the leader of this . . . group?"

"I guess," she said with a shrug, her pigtails swinging back-and-forth. "They are always following me around."

I studied the young team for a couple seconds thinking over my options, but there were none. They were children. I couldn't just leave them to fend for themselves.

"Fine," I groaned in surrender. "I'll take you and your team to the drop-off, but that's it."

* * *

It wasn't long before I found myself seated across from the three kids in one of the passenger compartments on the train.

I have never been very good with kids. We were only a couple minutes into our journey, and I already didn't know what to do with them.

The youngest, I think his name was Teether, suddenly reached out to grab his brother's blanket.

"Mine!" Timmy cried out, trying to tug the item out of the baby's hands.

Teether let his pacifier fall out of his mouth, and proceeded to suck on the blue fabric.

"No!" Timmy screamed again, and reached out to rip the cloth out of the younger one's mouth.

As the fabric was violently ripped out of his mouth, the child instantly burst into to tears.

"WAAAAH!"

Needing something else to occupy some of my time, I turned to glance out the window and watched the landscape as we zoomed passed. I was strongly starting to wish that I had brought a book with me.

"Two hours," I reminded myself. "It's just a two hour train ride, and then it will all be over."

Surely I could last two hours with this group.

But, when I turned back to face the young team, I was left staring blankly at an empty seat.

They were gone.

"Great idea, Robin," I said out loud, sarcastically. "Put Raven in charge of the kids."

* * *

"Melvin?" I called as I wandered down the aisle. "Timmy?"

If I didn't find them soon, I would never hear the end of it from Robin . . .

Spying Teether up ahead, I sprinted over and grabbed him right before he could slither underneath a seat out of my reach.

"One down, two to go," I noted as I tried to ignore the feeling of slobber that was seeping onto my shoulder.

Just then, I heard another wail from farther down the train.

"Timmy," I guessed with a sigh, and hurried after the cry.

Open the door, I stepped over into the next car to see some tables and chairs set up for the passengers to sit and relax in during their ride.

Letting the door swing shut behind me, I scanned the car with my eyes trying to figure out where the child's cry had come from.

"Whose kid is that?" I heard someone complain, followed by another cry from a child.

"What a brat!" Came another complaint.

Making my way passed the train's bar, I saw Timmy lying on his stomach in the middle of a full-fledged tantrum.

Desperate to get away from the judgmental stares of our fellow riders, I walked over towards Timmy and simply reached down to grab one corner of his blanket, not breaking my stride. By now, I knew their was no way he would ever let go of the piece of fabric, and ended up dragging the poor kid out to the next car.

"My child never threw a tantrum," I heard someone announce behind me right before the door slid closed.

"Really?" I thought, slightly irritated at the judgments people were throwing at me. "I would love to know how she managed that . . ."

But I didn't have time to question her about her parenting techniques. I still had one more child to find.

"Melvin?" I called, making my way through a couple more cars. "Melvin, where are you?"

My patience was starting to wear thin when I finally entered the last car on the train.

"Melvin!" I cried in relief, spying her sitting atop a huge box surround by other luggage. "What are you doing?"

"Bobby couldn't fit in our car," she explained, motioning to the empty space in front of her.

"Bobby, huh?" I groaned.

A loud screech suddenly reached our ears from under us, and Timmy and I were knocked off our feet by the rock of the train. Holding the baby close to my chest, I turned as I fell making sure to land backwards to protect him. Glancing up to check on Melvin, I saw her laying on his side on the ground having been knocked off the box in the sudden stop.

"Is everyone okay?" I asked, pushing myself back to my feet.

"I think so," I heard from Melvin's direction, while Timmy just sniffled as he stood back up.

Glancing down, I checked on the baby that was still in my arms. He smiled right back at me, as if the whole experience hadn't affected him at all.

"Sorry folks." I looked up as the voice of train conductor was heard over the loudspeaker. "We are experiencing some unexpected mechanical problems. We are sorry for any inconvenience. We will have you all on your way as soon as we can."

I let out another sigh in frustration. This could not be happening . . .

* * *

"Choo-choo bye-bye?" Teether asked as a cradle him in my arms.

"Yes, choo-choo bye-bye," I agreed.

If there was a mechanical problem with the train, I knew it could be hours before it was up and working again. I hated the idea of just sitting around waiting with these three feisty children. I always felt better when I kept myself busy with something.

It might take longer to walk the distance to the drop-off point, but I had to do something to keep these kids preoccupied. This also sounded like a way better idea than being back on the train having people send me judgmental looks.

"But how are we going to make it over the mountains," Melvin asked, staring wide-eyed at the huge cliffs that lay in front of us.

"We'll fly over them," I explained, creating a black platform beneath us. "It will be faster than walking."

"We can't!" Melvin cries. "Teether's tummy gets sick."

"We don't have that far to go. I'm sure he'll be fine."

But we were only a couple feet off the ground when we all heard the baby's stomach rumble and his cheeks bulged out straining desperately to keep from throwing up. Seconds later, there was a mess on my boots.

"Nice," I noted disgustedly.

"I tried to tell you," Melvin pointed out, and Teether face starts to turn green.

"Okay, okay," I give in, and start to take us back to the ground. "We'll walk."

Touching down on the grass again, I pick up Teether and Timmy in each of my arms. I watched as Melvin lifted a hand up in a gesture where she must have been pretending to hold on to the hand of her imaginary friend, and together we turned to make the long journey of the mountains.

* * *

Hours passed. The sun slowly sunk down behind the hilltops and the moon made its appearance in the sky. My legs were quickly starting to get tired from walking for so long, and my arms were growing tired from carrying both of the boys. I couldn't imagine how Melvin was feeling, and she still held her hand up clutching Bobby's.

How much farther was the drop-off point?

"It's past Timmy's bedtime," Melvin pointed out, just seconds before I heard said child yawn in my arms, "and we missed dinner."

Spying a run-down cabin in the distance, I nodded my head in that direction. "We'll stop there for the night. Get a fresh start in the morning."

Using my powers to open the locked cabin door, and stepped inside setting the two kids that I had been carrying down with a soft sigh of relief.

Giving the space a quick scan, I saw one bed that we placed against one wall, a fireplace, a couple chairs, and along one wall was kitchenette.

I really wanted to take a seat and rest in one of those comfy looking chairs, but my stomach was starting to make noises in hunger, and Melvin had mentioned needing food as well.

Stepping over to the kitchenette, I began to rummage through the cabinets trying to find something for us to eat. I found several cans of food and grabbed a bunch in my arms and brought them over to the table to go through them with the kids.

"What do you guys want?" I asked as I shifted through the cans. "We have . . . peas, carrots . . . and beans. Lots of beans . . ."

"Teether likes mashed carrots, and Timmy and I will eat beans," Melvin said, continuing to be helpful through this whole experience.

For next thirty minutes, I went about creating a fire in the fireplace and used it to help heat up our food.

I was just finishing up my meal, and starting to think that I wasn't a complete failure in taking care of these kids when Timmy started crying again.

"What now?" I groaned, turning in his direction.

"My . . . blankie . . . you . . . see . . . my . . . blankie?" Timmy said between sobs, holding up the piece of fabric.

"Yeah . . ." I said, still not understanding what was wrong with him. "It's, uh, pretty?"

"My . . . blankie . . . see?" he continued.

Teether chose that moment to totter over himself and started bawling.

I was obviously not cut out to take care of children. With my upcoming destiny, I had never picture myself as being a mother, but this adventure was just proving to me how badly I would be at it anyways.

By now my headache was starting to return and tried my best to tune them both out. Clapping my hands over my ears, I turned away from the table only to have Melvin tug lightly at my cloak.

"Raven, you still need to feed Bobby."

Thankful for an excuse to go outside for a little quiet time, I grabbed a plate from the cabinet, scooped a little food onto the dish, and headed for the door. With yet another sigh, I took a seat on the steps and set the plate down next to me.

"Eat up, Bobby," I said sarcastically, not expecting anything to happen from the gesture and not reserving one.

Staring out at the landscape in front of me, I felt the pure exhaustion in my muscles. My whole body seemed to be aching. I couldn't handle anymore of this by myself. I needed help.

Reaching under my cloak for my communicator, I flipped the screen open.

"Raven calling . . . anyone!" Seconds later, Beast Boy's face appeared on the screen. "Anyone besides Beast Boy . . ."

"Did you finish your mission?" he asked, a small smile on his face. I hadn't seen Beast Boy smile at me in weeks. This confused me until he added, "You look exhausted."

Was he laughing at me?

"We had a little detour," I explained, trying to shake off my despair. "I'll drop them off tomorrow . . . if I survive that long," I added, turning away from the communicator.

"Kids are easy," Beast Boy explained astonishingly. "All you have to do is make funny faces. Oh, and jokes! Kids love jokes."

So, he was laughing at me . . .

Talking to the changeling was only making me feel worse. Flipping the device closed, I hung up on him.

"I guess I'm on my own," I noted sadly.

Standing up slowly due to my aching muscles, I turned around and prepared myself to head back inside to face the little monsters.

Opening the door, I was instantly hit with the screaming of the two boys. The once constant sound of crying had now turned into an ear-splitting wail.

Slamming the door behind me, I brought my hands instantly to my temples as my head started to throb.

"You don't babysit much, do you?"

I turned to see Melvin sitting on the bed, her legs dangling over the side.

"That obvious, huh?" I asked, raising an eyebrow.

Ignoring the question, the girl proceed to explain what was going on with her siblings.

"Teether's got gas," she said, pointing at the screaming baby.

"And what's wrong with Timmy Tantrum?"

"His blankie is ripped," she replied matter-a-factly.

Deciding to deal with the baby first, I picked the kid up and held him against my shoulder, patting his back like I had seen done on TV. It wasn't long before I was rewarded with the sound of him belching.

Success!

With Teether calmed down, I moved on to Timmy.

Reaching over, I grabbed the torn blanket that the orange-headed child was holding out to me and preceded to use the closest available object to fix the fabric: a stapler. A couple quick clicks with that machine in the blanket was repaired, and I handed it back over to the child with the return reward of silence.

Tantrums under control, both boys headed over towards the bed to join their sister only to turn back to stare at me.

"Now what?"

"Well, you could tell us a bedtime story," Melvin advised with a smile. "Kids like stories."

"Umm, I don't really know any . . ." I start, but was interrupted by another out burst from Timmy.

"Me want story . . . Story, story, story, story, story, story, STORY!" he complained bouncing on the bed, and getting louder and louder with every repeat of the word.

"Alright!" I screeched back at him, and after a second, I slowly started to tell them a story.

The day had been such a hectic one. I could still feel the weariness in my bones, and couldn't wait to finally be able to close my eyes, but when they were like this; quiet and relaxed, they almost appeared to be . . . peaceful. It was such a big difference from when they were wide-awake and running around.

In a weird and totally unexpected way, I felt like I was growing attached to the little monsters. I honestly believed I was going to miss the little rugrats after I was forced to leave them at the drop-off tomorrow.

Sure, they could be a handful at times, but when I got it right, when I would finally get them to calm down and smile at me . . . it made me feel great.

As I progress with the story, I started to pull the covers back on the bed and had them crawl under to lie down. As my story drifted to the end, I watched as their eyes began to droop and their breathing grew shallow.

Maybe I wouldn't make such a bad mother after all.

"And they all lived happily ever after . . . The end."


End file.
